DALLAS — Dallas Fire-Rescue Assistant Chief Delridge Williams provided an update on recruiting efforts for the department at a public safety committee meeting at Dallas City Hall on Tuesday.
“We’re going to meet, if not come close to exceeding, the numbers we projected at the beginning of the fiscal year,” he shared.
Chief Williams was excited to talk about the single-function paramedic program, for those who only want to become medics and not firefighters. There are also programs for military members and starting this fall, high school freshmen through a partnership with Dallas Independent School District and Dallas Community College.
DFR has right-sized requirements for college hours and the Texas Success Initiative Assessment, increased testing from one or two times a year to year-round. It’s also hiring four times a year, decreasing processing time for interested candidates.
This as a current group of 40 recruits is working its way through training in anticipation of graduating the fire academy next month.
When asked why he’s training to join DFR, Saul Castaneda said, "I was at a corporate job and I thought, change of pace. Why not serve the community I grew up in? I'm able to give back and do something I'm proud of and not many people can say they've done that."
Captain Corey Womack has been with DFR for more than 4 years.
"This is the next generation we have moving forward and we don't want that to be missed, the hard work they put in. Getting people from different avenues of life and we create them to be oriented toward our mission at Dallas Fire Rescue of serving, caring, and protecting," said Womack.
If you’re interested in joining Dallas Fire Rescue, you can learn more about their recruiting opportunities here.
For Kaitlyn Guillory, this opportunity has been rejuvenating.
"Just knowing that I get to be that one person in the family or one person that my friends know is exciting and hopefully will inspire others to do it," said Guillory.