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NVFC Academy - Online Training

The NVFC offers a series of online training opportunities on topics of critical importance to the fire and emergency services. Course titles, descriptions, and schedules are listed below. To learn about on-site training opportunities through the NVFC Academy, click here.

Health and Safety

Seatbelts Top Our Response Priority
This course is part of the STOP (Safety Tops Our Priorities) training series on vehicle safety. Seatbelts Top Our Response Priority is a 30-minute session that educates participants on the importance of using a seatbelt. The course examines how to encourage safety when responding to emergencies and how seatbelt use and safe vehicle operations can be enforced at the department level. The training is provided using an online platform from McNeil and Company’s Emergency Services Insurance Program (ESIP). Course materials and certificates of completion are provided. To access, click here and register as a student using access code 6832.

Health and Wellness Advocate Training

The NVFC has adapted curriculum from its popular Health and Wellness Advocate Workshop into five free online webinars. This innovative training gives first responders the foundation they need to live healthy, reduce heart disease risk factors, and implement successful department health and fitness programs. The courses are taught by ACE-certified instructors from L&T Health and Fitness, an award-winning fitness and health management company.

Live webinars:

The NVFC has teamed up with Scott Safety to provide five free live webinars.

  • FIRST DUE: Human Function and the Exercise Response
    Wednesday, March 21 – 2:00 pm ET
  • THE ACCELERANT: Physiology of Weight Loss and Healthful Nutrition
    Wednesday, April 11 – 2:00 pm ET
  • DIRECT ATTACK: Putting out the Health Risks and Increasing the Exercise Pump
    Wednesday, May 9 – 2:00 pm ET
  • FULL INVOLVEMENT: Firing Up Your Program
    Wednesday, June 20 – 2:00 pm ET
  • EVOLUTION: Progressing through Functional Exercises to Improve Performance
    Wednesday, July 11 – 2:00 pm ET

To register, go to https://nvfc.webex.com and click on 'Upcoming' in the Live Sessions tab. Click here to learn more and view course descriptions.

On-demand training:

The Health and Wellness Advocate training is also available on-demand, using an online platform from McNeil and Company's Emergency Services Insurance Program (ESIP). Course materials and certificates of completion are provided. To access these training webinars, click here and sign-in if you have an existing account, or register as a student using access code 6832.

Overcoming Wellness and Fitness Barriers in the Fire Service: A Study by Johns Hopkins
June 19 - 2pm Eastern
Register at https://nvfc.webex.com  under the Upcoming Sessions tab.
Johns Hopkins University and the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) have collaborated on a three-year research project to study health interventions in firefighters in Maryland.  Participate in a one-hour webinar that will provide insight into the focus group feedback, barriers to wellness and fitness in the fire service and how some departments have developed creative solutions to their wellness and fitness challenges.

Pump Operations and Maintenance Training Course
The NVFC teamed up with Hale Products Inc. to offer this free online training course. The course provides a general pump operations overview and offers guidelines for pump maintenance, including weekly, monthly, and annual maintenance activities. The training is available online, courtesy of McNeil and Company’s Emergency Services Insurance Program (ESIP). Certificates of completion are provided. To access, go to http://training.mcneilandcompany.com/ and register as a student using access code 6832. 

Health and Wellness Webinar Series
The National Volunteer Fire Council has developed a series of webinars as part of its continuing effort to educate first responders about health and wellness. These webinars focus on a variety of health and wellness topics targeted to the fire and emergency services. Click on the titles to access the webinars unless otherwise noted.

  • Functional Exercise: This webinar explains how to improve your on-duty performance through targeted workouts.
  • Nutrition: Learn how to use the nutrition facts label, smart snacking tips, and how to eat healthfully when dining out.
  • Program Design: Find out about safe and effective training and exercise programs to implement at the station.
  • Heart Health: Find out more about the anatomy of the heart, how a heart attack happens, and the unique risk factors of a first responder.
  • Smoking Cessation: Listen to the Know Your Health: Why I Smoke and How to Quit presentation, which describes the obstacles to quitting smoking and how to overcome them.
  • Heat Stress - Choosing the Right PPE: The NVFC partnered with TECGEN on this webinar, which explains the physiology of heat stress and how the total heat loss rating of your PPE applies to real world situations.
  • Obesity in the Fire Service: The NVFC partnered with the HOPE Health Research Institute to study obesity in the fire service. This webinar outlines the findings of the study and provides recommendations to combat obesity and improve overall health.
  • The Insulin Connection: Learn about insulin’s diverse role in our bodies, beginning with  with a brief explanation of the physiology of insulin, then moving to behaviors that can improve insulin sensitivity and control blood sugar. Nutrition, exercise, sleep, and stress can all affect blood sugar levels and insulin production. This webinar shows how small changes in our everyday lives can improve our health and reduce the risk of diabetes, insulin resistance, high cholesterol, and obesity. To access this webinar, click here and register as a student using access code 6832.
  • The Impact of Stress on Firefighter Heart Health: This webinar explains the causes of stress and discusses the physiological, emotional, and behavioral affects stress can have on the mind and body. It identifies factors that can increase the risk of suffering from stress and how to manage, prevent, and reduce stress within the fire department. To access this webinar, click here and register as a student using access code 6832.
  • Basic Nutrition: This webinar will provide an easy-to-follow, comprehensive guide to basic firefighter nutrition and explain the "how, what, why, and when" of nutrition to maintain peak fitness throughout a fire service career. To access this webinar, click here and register as a student using access code 6832.
  • Functional Fitness for Firefighters: This webinar is a continuing education course designed for physical fitness professionals desiring to increase their knowledge and skills in the area of functional movements and coaching proper movement while maintaining stability and mobility. To access this webinar, click here and register as a student using access code 6832.


Recruitment and Retention

Recruitment and Retention in the Volunteer Emergency Services
This webinar discusses the challenges of recruiting and retaining volunteers and how to overcome these challenges.  Many fire and EMS departments across the nation are struggling to find and retain volunteer members. Yet with volunteers making up 71% of the fire service, it is critical that departments have enough members to effectively protect their communities. This webinar will help departments identify ways to attract new volunteers and maintain adequate staffing levels. The webinar lasts approximately 1 hour. Click here to download the webinar.
 

Grants and Funding

Grant Writing for the Emergency Services
This webinar educates volunteer fire and emergency services personnel on how to write a successful grant narrative in an effort to secure funding for their local fire/EMS department and provides specific examples of award-winning grant narratives. Participants will also be introduced to a variety of funding opportunities, including government and private grants. Click here to download the webinar.  

Leadership

Emergency Services Liability
Instructed by Dr. William F. Jenaway, CFO, CFPS, Executive Vice President of VFIS, this webinar focuses on fire service risk management and liability. Ten topics ranging from financial management and bonding needs, to harassment and discrimination, to improper hiring and termination will be covered. The webinar will focus largely on volunteer and combination fire departments and discuss helpful management techniques to navigate these sensitive issues.  Click here to view the webinar.

From Volunteer to Combination:  Making the Transition
This webinar discusses the challenges of transitioning from a volunteer to a combination department. Many departments across the nation are dealing with the transition process. This webinar will help departments navigate personnel issues, leadership, and best practices. Topics covered include merging departments, personnel conflicts, adjusting to the presence of paid staff, managing growth and increased call volume, and recruitment and retention. Click  here to download the webinar.
 

Fire Corps Training

Fire Corps offers a series of free training sessions and resources designed for department leaders, department staff, Fire Corps program managers, and local Fire Corps volunteers who wish to start and/or participate in a Fire Corps program.

Courses include: 

  • FC-100: Introduction to Fire Corps
  • FC-200: Starting and Implementing a Fire Corps Program
  • FC-201: Achieving More through Collaboration
  • FC-202: Project and Volunteer Management
  • FC-203: Program Assessment
  • FC-204: Funding and Support
  • FC-205: Building the Relationship with Suppression
  • FC-300: Activity Ideas for Fire Corps Programs
  • FC-301: Fire Corps in Disaster Response
  • FC-302: Providing Rehab
  • FC-303: Fire Corps in Public Education
  • FC-304: Conducting Home Safety Checks
  • FC-305: Community Assistance Program
  • FC-400: Marketing your Program
  • FC-401: Engaging Youth Volunteers
  • FC-402: Engaging Senior Volunteers


Find course descriptions, schedule, and registration information at www.firecorps.org/academy.