Fire Safety
Institute

Education

It is almost one hundred years since formal Fire Protection Engineering education began in the US. Progression has been a slow process of convincing the world that science can be used to combat fire. Gradually, scientific evaluation of fire safety is becoming an acknowledged part of the design and operation of buildings and other systems.

The education of engineers, architects and other professionals is a major concern of the Institute. There is an acute lack of fire safety expertise in the building process and in administration of fire risk. At the same time educational resources in fire safety technology are limited.

The Fire Safety Institute pursues its educational goals through:

• Production of texts and tutorial papers on innovative and fundamental fire protection engineering.
• Presentation of seminars and lectures on technical aspects of fire safety.
• Development of fire protection engineering curricula for engineers, fire service personnel, and other professionals

Specific educational programs developed and presented by the Fire Safety Institute include:

• Fire Safety for the Design Professional - University of Vermont
• Fire Safety and Historic Preservation - Preservation Institute for the Building Crafts
• Fire Suppression Rating Schedule - Insurance Services Office (ISO)
• Fire Management and Risk Assessment - Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE)
• Advanced Fire Risk Assessment – University of Maryland
• Fire Risk Analysis course at UW
• Fire Safety for Historic Buildings Workshops for CCAHA

Distance learning provides opportunities for people around the world to be involved in the best available education and training. A number of academic programs have developed around the world in recent decades, but the educational supply is still geographically sparse and the need is intensifying as we have experienced devastating fire from terrorist attack and increased complexity of legal requirements, such as performance-based evaluation and fire risk assessment. The Department of Fire Protection Engineering at the University of Maryland now has available an online Masters of Fire Protection Engineering degree program. This online FPE course of study leads to a "Professional Masters" degree in fire protection engineering.

Jack Watts, Director of the Fire Safety Institute, served as the first Program Director of the online Masters of Fire Protection Engineering degree program at the University of Maryland.