For Immediate Release

Friday, Feb. 3, 2017

Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: john@jgpr.net

Andover Deputy Fire Chief Graduates from Management Training Program

ANDOVER— Chief Michael B. Mansfield is pleased to announce that Deputy Fire Chief Keith Weightman graduated from the 23rd offering of the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy’s Chief Fire Officer Management Training Program this week.

The Chief Fire Officer Management Training Program helps fire officers improve their ability to lead and manage personnel and the department, provides skills to understand employees’ needs and problems, promotes personal productivity, increases the capacity to manage both human and technical resources, and increases inter-agency cooperation.

Deputy Chief Weightman graduated from the 14-week course on Thursday, Feb. 2. The Massachusetts Firefighting Academy, a division of the Department of Fire Services, offers this program tuition-free.

This program establishes benchmarks for training in fire and emergency service management so that chiefs may be better prepared to serve their department and community.

“Congratulations to Deputy Chief Weightman — this is a great accomplishment,” Chief Mansfield said. “This course has given him invaluable skills that will be used for effective management and leadership in the Andover Fire Department.”

The Chief Fire Officer Management Training Program was developed in accordance with National Fire Protection Association Standards for chief fire officers, and is delivered jointly by the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy and the Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management at the University of Massachusetts. The comprehensive course provides training in the non-fire suppression aspects of managing fire departments.

Curriculum topics include human resource management, ethics, executive leadership and legal issues, governmental and organizational structures, information management, customer-focused strategic planning, budgets and public finance, community awareness and public relations, and labor relations.

At the end of the course, Deputy Chief Weightman was required to write a research paper that identified a current problem or challenge faced by his organization and propose a viable solution. He then presented his proposal to a panel of municipal officials for their consideration.

“These fire service leaders are committed to continually developing their management and leadership skills in order to provide the highest level of service to the communities they protect,” State Fire Marshal Peter Ostroskey said.

Thirty other graduates in the program serve the fire departments of Barnstable, Burlington, Cambridge, Concord, Dartmouth District 1, Foxborough, Gloucester, Halifax, Harwich, Hingham, Leicester, Lynn, Marshfield, North Andover, Northbridge, Orleans, Oxford, Plainville, Revere, Sandwich, Tewksbury, Waltham, Westborough, Westfield, Weston and Worcester.

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