RA Academy
2009 Fire Academy
2008 Academy Pictures
2009 Academy Pictures
Boulder Fire Department held its ninth annual Residence Life Fire Academy
The Boulder Fire Department provided fire safety training and education to more than 200 University of Colorado (CU) Housing & Dining Services' resident advisors (RAs), student leaders and housing staff from 8 a.m. to noon on Tuesday, Aug. 11. The training took place at the Williams Village Residence Hall community at 30th Street and Baseline Road.
Boulder's program takes an innovative and cooperative approach to providing fire safety education to students - an approach that CU officials say is effective because it is student-based.
"We know this is an important safety topic for our students," said Deb Coffin, dean of students at CU-Boulder. "Based on student input, we assisted the Boulder Fire Department in putting together this interactive and very effective program. Student staff members have spread the word about how important fire evacuation is for everyone's safety, and the result of our partnership is much higher evacuation rates than in the years prior to our implementing the training."
The classes are built around a train-the-trainer model and include a practice evacuation from a residence hall floor filled with theatrical smoke. Students also will learn about safe practices for using fire extinguishers on live fires and learn from case studies of fires in off-campus housing in Boulder.
The training is taking on additional significance this year. In the first seven months of the year, there have already been four fires in off-campus housing for students.
"The Fire Academy helps RAs teach students why evacuation is mandatory, why alarms save lives and how to avoid fire hazards," said Sherry Kenyon, the city's fire education coordinator. "The knowledge freshmen gain helps make residence halls safer and often transfers as they move off campus to live independently."
The award-winning program serves as a national model for fire safety training on college campuses. The Residence Life Fire Academy is co-hosted by the Boulder Fire Department and CU's Housing & Dining Services.
Some tips that are provided to students as a result of the training:
- When a fire alarm sounds, get out. Always evacuate.
- Even though your residence hall has sprinklers, deadly smoke can travel in ventilation systems, so you must evacuate.
- Find your nearest exit, which is not necessarily your most familiar route.
- Use the stairs when evacuating. Elevators can trap you between floors or open onto the fire floor.
- If you are trapped and cannot evacuate, call 911 with your location. Do not jump.
- Make sure the smoke alarms in your rooms have working batteries.
- Take responsibility for your own safety.
For more information, contact Sherry Kenyon at (303) 441-4355.
Last Updated on Thursday, 17 September 2009 16:09
Fire - Rescue