The International Association of Fire Chiefs Foundation (IAFCF) is accepting applications for its educational scholarships from qualified first responders until June 1, 2009.

Any person is eligible to apply if he or she is an active member with a minimum of three years’ volunteer, two years’ paid or a combination of paid and volunteer of three years with a state, county, provincial, municipal, community, industrial, or federal fire department.

Scholarships provided by the IAFCF help improve the fire service by helping first responders advance their college level educations so that they are better prepared to face the ever increasing and complex challenges of today’s fire service.

In addition to the IAFCF’s general scholarship awards, the IAFCF is offering newly created scholarship awards for 2009:

· The recently established Motorola Future Leaders Scholarship Fund offers scholarships targeted to company officers recently or currently enrolled in IAFC’s Company Officer Leadership Development Program offered at Fire Rescue International (www.iafc.org/fri).

· The IAFCF also will award a scholarship from the Heather Westphal Memorial Scholarship Fund, created in memory of IAFC’s marketing manager who died in a tragic accident in October 2008. This award will benefit women in the fire service and is supported by the IAFC and The International Association of Women in the Fire and Emergency Services (www.i-women.org)

The IAFCF Board and staff thank the Motorola Foundation, The Reed Elsevier Foundation, Glatfelter’s Insurance Group and the many other fire-service-related companies and individuals who demonstrate their support of first responder education by donating the IAFC Foundation.

For information, or to discuss a possible extension, please contact Judy G. Kirk at jkirk@iafc.org or 703-537-4830. The application form can be found at the IAFC Foundation website