The First Person They Are Hiring Is the Fire Chief

Norvin Collins served as chief of the department for 15 years of two separate combination fire departments in Oregon and Washington and over three and a half decades in public safety. He previously served as firefighter/paramedic, lieutenant, captain, battalion chief, and division chief at Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue, Oregon’s second-largest fire department. Chief Collins has held various leadership and operational positions as part of a FEMA NIMS ICS response system.

Chief Collins presents nationally on a variety of leadership and development topics including recruitment and retention, critical thinking, and leading with an understanding of individual and organizational personalities. A consultant for organizational development, strategic planning, and leadership, Chief Collins serves in various roles for the VCOS Symposium in the Sun, Summit on Combination and Volunteer Department Future Development, National Fallen Firefighters Foundation and Tampa II, the 10-year review of the 16 life safety initiatives.

Chief Collins is a doctoral candidate focusing on the utilization of crisis canines for mental fortitude. He holds a master’s in psychology with a specialization in organizational leader development, a bachelor’s in fire service administration, and executive fire officer credentials through the National Fire Academy. He holds numerous fire operations certifications and has published papers on various fire service topics as well as an article on the application of survey data in critical decision-making and on mental wellness awareness in public safety.

BRIEF BIOGRAPHY
Chief Michael W. Robinson
Carroll County, MD-Department of Fire & EMS

Chief Michael W. Robinson has been involved in the fire service for 49 years. He began as a volunteer with the Earleigh Heights VFC in Anne Arundel County, MD where he is a life member and served as the chief for nine years. He began his career with the Baltimore County Fire Department in 1983 as a paramedic and rose through the ranks to Deputy Fire Chief. He has served various roles including EMS, Emergency Management and was the chief of training for 12 years. He served as the Emergency Operations shift commander for his final assignment where he oversaw all departmental operations for the 53-station career/volunteer staffed department. He was also the chief of special operations and had oversight for fire communications, public education/PIO and the emergency management program. He retired in 2015 after nearly 33 years with the department.
In 2021 he became the Director/Chief of the newly formed Carroll County Department of Fire & EMS which is a combination career volunteer system consisting of 14 volunteer owned stations which are jointly staffed by county career personnel (232) and 1000 active volunteers. This is a fully integrated system with shared leadership and common operating parameters, and an integrated career/volunteer chain of command. The current budget is $33 million.
Chief Robinson holds a BA degree in History, a master’s in human resource development and is pro qual certified in numerous areas. He is also nationally credentialed as a Chief Fire Officer (CFO) and and is a nationally registered EMT-P.
An active instructor with MFRI for 39 yrs., Chief Robinson was also an active instructor for 31 years at the NFA in multiple program areas and has developed several NFA courses. He is also an instructor with the Purdue University Fire Science and Homeland Security Programs. Since 1991 he has served as the chair of the MD Fire Service Professional Qualifications Board (MFSPQB) and has been active with the pro board and previously served on the NFPA pro qual committee. He is a 40-year member of the IAFC and a charter member of the VCOS.
A father of 5 children (3 of whom are volunteer members) and a grandfather, he is married to Shannon who is also a volunteer fire service member and resides in Greencastle, PA.

John M. Buckman III served as a German Township Fire Chief managing volunteers for 35 years. He is most proud of the title “pawpaw.” Leslie his wife has spent 29 years together. He currently serves as Education Coordinator for the International Association of Fire Chief Volunteer and Combination Officers Section. He is the Director of Government and Regional Outreach for IamResponding. He served as the Indiana Fire Academy Director for 15 years. He served as President of the International Association of Fire Chief in 2001-2002.

He has authored over 150 articles in various publications. In 1996 he was selected by Fire Chief Magazine as Fire Chief of the Year in 1996. He has published 4 books and 7 photography books. He received the Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels Meritorious Service Award. The National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2022 he received the Jimmy Seavey Health and Wellness award presented by the NVFC. and the Presidents Award from the International Society of Fire Service Instructors.

He was one of the founders of the Volunteer and Combination Officer Section (VCOS) and the National Fire Academy Alumni Association. He has contributed to several “ribbon reports” published by the VCOS. He was asked to be one of the editors for the original Lavender Ribbon Report published by the VCOS and NVFC in 2019. In 2021 he along with Brian McQueen spearheaded the update for the Lavender Ribbon Report. He is a principal author of the Yellow Ribbon Report and the updated updated Training Volunteers white paper published by the National Volunteer Fire Council and the Volunteer and Combination Officers Section.