Columbia Southern University and Women in Fire have named Kaylee Brown of Oakland, Maine, as the recipient of the 2021 Women in Fire Scholarship.
Brown is currently a firefighter paramedic and is looking to pursue her degree in fire administration in order to serve her community and accomplish her career goals.
“I have goals to complete my fire officer one and two certifications and become the first female career officer at my department,” said Brown. “Within five years, I want to be an officer, have my bachelor’s degree in fire science and be completely certified in all aspects of technical rescue.”
Brown wants to be valuable to her department, as they are to her. One way she looks to do this is to fight for equality for women in the fire service.
“In the last couple of decades women have taken a stand. We’ve fought and clawed to be deemed worthy,” she said. “We have to complete the same interviews, the same knowledge tests and the same physical agility tests.”
By being awarded this scholarship, Brown is off to a good start in making waves for females in the fire profession. She hopes that others will be encouraged by her achievements and strive to change the narrative for women in this field.
“We do not need special treatment as women, we need equal treatment,” she said. “The passion I have for this frequently overlooked issue is what drove me to become the first and only career female at my department in its history. I am in hopes that this will inspire other women to push for what they want and not give up their goals.
CSU and Women in Fire have worked together for the past five years to offer scholarships to its members. Each scholarship covers up to 60 credit hours toward one online degree program. The scholarships are applied directly to the recipient’s tuition for up to three years or until the completion of the selected online degree program, whichever comes first.
To learn more about the Women in Fire Scholarship, visit ColumbiaSouthern.edu/Scholarships.
Disclaimer: These testimonials may not reflect the experience of all CSU students.
Multiple factors, including prior experience, geography, and degree field, affect career outcomes.
CSU does not guarantee a job, promotion, salary increase, eligibility for a position, or other career growth.
