The Executive Fire Officer (EFO) and Leadership Symposium is an annual event for EFO Program graduates, current and future fire and emergency medical services (EMS) leaders, and students at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Learn more about the goals of the symposium.
Symposium agenda
Friday, April 5, 2024
| 7:30 - 8 a.m. | Conference registration E Building, first floor |
| 8 - 8:10 a.m. | Call to order, Pledge of Allegiance Chief Trey Mayo |
| 8:10 - 8:20 a.m. | Opening remarks Eriks Gabliks, National Fire Academy (NFA) superintendent |
| 8:20 - 8:40 a.m. | Executive Fire Officer (EFO) Program Updates Edward Kensler, Chief William Hyde, section staff |
| 8:40 - 9 a.m. | Manno Award Chief Curvin Wolfgang |
| 9 - 9:45 a.m. | Leadership Lessons From the Lab Dr. Daniel Madrzykowski, senior director of research for the Underwriters Laboratories Firefighter Safety Research Institute |
| 9:45 - 10 a.m. | Break |
| 10 - 11 a.m. | Building Resilience in Leadership: Strategies for Growth and Confidence John Tippett, director of fire programs, National Fallen Firefighters Foundation |
| 11 a.m. - noon | Leadership Through Upstream Thinking Kristopher T. Blume, fire chief of the Meridian Fire Department (Idaho) |
| Noon - 1:15 p.m. | Lunch National Emergency Training Center (NETC) Dining Hall |
| 1:15 - 2:15 p.m. | DEI/Diversity Fatigue Dr. Hezedean Smith, fire chief at Polk County Fire and Rescue (Florida) |
| 2:15 - 2:30 p.m. | Break |
| 2:30 - 4 p.m. | Human Resources Hot Topics: Pregnancy, Drug Use, Others John Rukavina, director of Public Fire Safety Services |
| 4 - 4:30 p.m. | EFO Section presentation Chief Curvin Wofgang, Chief William Hyde, TBD |
| 4:30 - 4:45 p.m. | Closing remarks Chief Trey Mayo |
| 4:45 - 5 p.m. | Break |
| 5 - 6 p.m. | Partner information tables, meet with authors of select EFO research papers, and reception at NETC Command Post Pub Hosted by International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) EFO Section |
| 6 - 9 p.m. | IAFC/EFO Symposium Gathering The Ott House This is an independent event that is not affiliated with the NFA. |
Saturday, April 6, 2024
| 8 - 8:10 a.m. | Call to order, Pledge of Allegiance Chief Trey Mayo |
| 8:10 - 9:30 a.m. | Chiefs panel Moderated by Eriks Gabliks, NFA superintendent |
| 9:30 - 10:15 a.m. | Mental Health Dena Ali, battalion chief with the Raleigh Fire Department (North Carolina) |
| 10:15 - 10:30 a.m. | Break |
| 10:30 - 11:30 a.m. | Safety/Injury Reduction Dr. Anthony Stowers, retired fire chief/emergency management director |
| 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. | Lunch National Emergency Training Center (NETC) Dining Hall |
| 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. | Put Your People in Their Place... To Ensure Success Rudy Ruiz, founder/CEO of Resource Management Consultants |
| 1:30 - 2:30 p.m. | WUI/Risk Reduction Matt Samson, deputy fire chief of South San Francisco Fire Department Dave Winnacker, fire chief of Moraga-Orinda Fire District (California) |
| 2:30 - 2:45 p.m. | Break |
| 2:45 - 3:45 p.m. | Generational Leader Ellen Yarborough, deputy chief of South Media Fire Company |
| 3:45 - 4:45 p.m. | Lessons in Leadership Charlie Dickinson, former U.S. deputy fire administrator and former Pittsburgh Fire Department chief |
| 4:45 - 5 p.m. | NFA/EFO closing |