New Wahluke fire science class a partnership with fire district
Grant County Fire District No. 8 Deputy Chief David Patterson will play a major role in the Fire Science class at Wahluke High School. He is responsible for fire fighter training at the district.
Fire science teacher Brian Taylor Wilson, who had five years of firefighting experience in the U.S. Air Force, will teach the new Fire Science class at Wahluke High School.
MATTAWA - Grant County Fire District No. 8 Deputy Chief David Patterson has been looking for a way to recruit more volunteers to the department.
He may have found it in a new elective class this fall at Wahluke High School - Fire Science. He will play a major role in instruction, and the class will be held at the fire department.
"I'm really looking forward to it," he said.
At the fire department, students will get a feel for the equipment, the trucks, the hoses and the personal gear firefighters use in their pursuit of public safety.
Patterson discussed the Fire Science idea with high school principal Jeff Pietla last spring, but he had not heard back on it. So he was surprised when he did just days ago.
The class almost came from out of the blue. It happened after it was discovered that new Wahluke teacher Brian Taylor Wilson did not have a first-period class on his schedule.
Pietla looked at Wilson's resume and discovered he had five years of experience in firefighting in the U.S. Air Force. Pietla matched that information with Patterson's spring request and pitched the class to Wilson.
Wilson was willing and eager. However, he admits he is flying by the seat of his pants. He doesn't know yet what direction the class will take for the long run.
"We will start out as public safety," he said.
Fire Science could turn out to be popular. It will be serious, but it could turn into a fun experience.
"We had six kids the first day of school, and I expect it to grow," Pietla said. "They're just finding out about it."
Wilson sees a lecture-dominated classroom. He sees lots of hands-on learning.
"I don't see how we could have a class like that without taking the kids out on field trips," he said.
Lectures could be provided by fire department personnel, the police chief, the sheriff, Transportation Security Administration personnel, Homeland Security personnel, emergency medical personnel and others in public safety.
Wilson lives in Ellensburg, where he was raised. He served in the United States Air Force from 2002-07. At Aviano Italy he was a member of the 31st Civil Engineer Squadron. The major duty was public safety.
"We did some firefighting," he said, "but the majority of what we did was medical emergency."
Wilson was an emergency medical technician while in the Air Force. He let the certification lapse after leaving, thinking he would never use it again.
"That's one of the reasons I want to call the class public safety at first," he said. "I need to take a two-month course to get re-certified."
Wilson also needs to send a record of his firefighting hours to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction so that the class may be certified as fire science.
After the Air Force, Wilson earned a degree in geography/land management and a certificate in wine business from Central Washington University. However, he could not find a job.
He went back to CWU and earned a degree in career and technical education. He is part of the CTE department at Wahluke, teaching high school engineering/3-D modeling, middle school workshop and high school applied math.
Even with all of that, it was discovered he had time for a fire science class. It will be a one semester class - repeated - this year. There may be advanced classes next year.