Allan Jowsey of the University of Edinburgh, Jessica A. Kratchman of the University of Maryland, and Scott Somers of Arizona State University, have been chosen as this year's scholarship recipients of the Fire Safety Education Memorial Fund of the nonprofit National Fire Protection Association (NFPA).
A committee appointed by the NFPA's board of directors selected the winners based on their academic achievement, leadership qualities, concern for others, commitment to volunteerism, and pursuit of careers in fire safety. Each scholarship is $5,000.
Jowsey, who is pursuing doctoral studies in fire safety engineering at the University of Edinburgh, is the recipient of the David B. Gratz Scholarship, established for students enrolled in fire science or engineering programs outside the United States or Canada. Jowsey's research has been published in conference proceedings and presented to the fire community across Europe. He refocused his studies from structural engineering to fire safety engineering after witnessing the events of 9/11. The Gratz Scholarship honors the fire chief in Maryland who was instrumental in initiating the fire science program at Montgomery College, where he served as an adjunct professor. Gratz was NFPA's first executive director for international operations, a position he held for 22 years.
Kratchman, who began part-time graduate studies in the spring and will be a full-time graduate student at the University of Maryland this fall, received the John L. Jablonsky Scholarship, which aids graduate students in fire protection engineering programs in the U.S. and Canada. Kratchman is currently a fire protection engineer and graduate student intern at the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Building and Fire Research Laboratory in Gaithersburg, MD. She is a member of the Society of Women Engineers. Jablonsky, an insurance-company executive, served on the National Commission on Fire Prevention and Control, and held numerous positions with the NFPA, receiving its highest honor, the Paul C. Lamb Award, in 1987.
Somers, a doctoral candidate in public administration at Arizona State University's School of Public Affairs, received the George D. Miller Scholarship. Somers is concentrating his doctoral studies in urban policy and inter-organizational relations pertaining to fire-service issues, including homeland security and response to terrorist events. He is a teaching associate in the Fire Programs at ASU East, and an author whose articles have been published in Journal of Emergency Medical Services; Fire Engineering; and Emergency Medical Services. The Miller Scholarship, established in 2002 in tribute to NFPA's former president and chief executive officer, provides assistance to students in fire-service or public-administration programs in the U.S. or Canada.
Contributions to the Fire Safety Educational Memorial Fund also support four additional scholarships for fire service graduate students at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Quincy College, University of Maryland and Oklahoma State University. The educational institutions select these scholarship recipients.
For more information about these scholarships, please visit www.nfpa.org. Applications for NFPA Scholarships and contributions to the Fire Safety Educational Memorial Fund can be sent to: NFPA Fire Safety Educational Memorial Fund, c/o Christine Ellis, 1 Batterymarch Park, Quincy, MA 02169-7471, (617) 984-7244.
