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Course Descriptions — Fire Science (FSCN)

FSCN 302 Fire and Emergency Services Administration (3)

A presentation of modern management and planning techniques that apply to organizing a fire department. Procedures explored include those for evaluation and control of budgeting, personnel, communications, and planning. The traditional and evolving roles of the fire department in protection, prevention, and community service are discussed.

FSCN 303 Analytic Approaches to Public Fire Protection (3)

Prerequisite: FSCN 302. A presentation of techniques of operations research and systems analysis as they apply to problems in fire protection. Discussion covers techniques such as cost/benefit analysis, methods for locating fire stations, and the use of statistical analysis. Techniques for collecting data on fires and for managing information are explained. FSCN 304 Personnnel Management for Fire and

FSCN 304 Personnnel Management for Fire and Emergency Services (3)

Prerequisite: FSCN 302. An examination of personnel practices, management procedures, collective bargaining, binding arbitration, and applicable legislative and administrative procedures. Topics include promotion, personnel development, career and incentive systems, validation of physical requirements, and managerial and supervisory procedures.

FSCN 305 Fire Prevention Organization and Management (3)

An examination of prevention as the primary community-based strategy for fire protection. Topics include community risk reduction, codes and standards, inspections and plans review, incident investigation, fire-prevention research, and the relationship of master planning to fire prevention. The cultural, economic, governmental, nongovernmental, and departmental influences on fire prevention are also explored. Emphasis is on applying the principles studied to anticipate problems and develop strategies for fire prevention.

FSCN 306 Fire Investigation and Analysis (3)

An examination of the technical, investigative, legal and social aspects of fire. Topics include the principles of fire detection and analysis, environmental and psychological factors of arson, legal considerations, intervention, and mitigation strategies.

FSCN 401 Disaster and Fire Defense Planning (3)

Prerequisite: FSCN 302. A study of the concept and principles of assessing community risk and then developing regional and cooperative procedures and plans of response. The relationship of structural, climatic, and topological variables to group fires, conflagrations, and natural disasters is analyzed. Other aspects introduced include pre- and postoccurrence factors, such as organization, communications, planning, coordination, and command and logistics.

FSCN 402 Fire-Related Human Behavior (3)

A study of human behavior in fire and other emergency situations. Discussion examines current and past research on human behavior, systems models, life safety education, and building design in order to determine how these elements interrelate in emergency situations. A best-practice building life-safety system is presented as one that combines knowledge of psychology and sociology with engineering and education to produce the best possible outcomes in terms of human survivability in an emergency.

FSCN 403 Managerial Issues in Hazardous Materials (3)

Prerequisite: FSCN 302. The development of the knowledge and skills necessary to safely and effectively manage a hazardous materials emergency. Topics include health and safety concerns, political issues, regulations, site management and control, hazard and risk evaluation, information management, response objectives, special tactical problems, decontamination, and termination activities. Federal regulations such as OSHA 1910.120 and NFPA 472 (Standard on Professional Competency of Responders to Hazardous Materials Incidents) are addressed.

FSCN 411 Fire Protection Structure and Systems (3)

Presentation of design principles involved in protecting buildings and other structures from fire. Empirical tests and prediction procedures are explained. Practices in designing systems for detecting, controlling, and suppressing fires, as well as the basic hydraulic design of sprinkler and water-spray systems are presented. Recent innovations in the field are reviewed.

FSCN 412 Political and Legal Foundations of Fire Protection (3)

Prerequisite: FSCN 302. A consideration of the legal basis for the police powers of the government in connection with public safety. The responsibility, legal limitations, and liability of fire prevention organizations and personnel are examined. Judicial decisions are reviewed, with a focus on the implications of product-liability cases in the field of fire prevention.

FSCN 413 The Community and Fire Threat (3)

Prerequisite: FSCN 302. An analysis of the sociological, economic, and political characteristics of communities and their influence on the fire problem. Discussion covers methods of studying community profiles and structures and the economic, geographic, and sociological variables of fire threat. The functional basis of the community is examined, with attention to the diverse social roles of community agencies and the roles of fire service as a complex organization within the community.

FSCN 414 Fire Dynamics (3)

An investigation into the phenomena of fire propagation in the air-regulated phase and the fuel-regulated phase. Variables in the development of pre- and postflashover fire are analyzed. Topics include geometric material; gaseous, fluid-flow, and thermodynamic parameters; and fire models of compartments and buildings.

FSCN 415 Application of Fire Research (3)

Prerequisite: FSCN 303. A practical, up-to-date review of fire research and its application. The transfer of research and its implications for fire prevention and protection programs are addressed. The focus is on both national and international studies and on maintaining awareness of ongoing research developments.

FSCN 416 Emergency Services Training and Education (3)

An examination of the management and administration of training and education in fire and emergency services. Topics include the many systems of training and education available and the concept of professional development on both individual and organizational levels. Focus is on safety, especially understanding and preventing training deaths and injuries. Discussion explores how higher education/training contributes to the professional development of fire-service personnnel.

FSCN 486A Internship in Fire Science Through Co-op (3)

Prerequisite: FSCN 302 and formal admission to the Co-op program (program requirements are listed on p. 246). An opportunity to combine academic theory with new, career-related experience in fire science. At least 12 hours per week must be devoted to new tasks for a minimum of 180 hours during the Co-op session; four new tasks must be delineated in the Learning Proposal; and the course requirements must be completed. May be repeated upon approval of a new Learning Proposal that demonstrates new tasks and objectives related to fire science and that continues to advance application of academic theory in the workplace. Students may earn up to 15 credits in all internship coursework through Co-op toward a first bachelor’s degree and up to 9 credits toward a second bachelor’s degree. Co-op credits may not be used for general education requirements and, unless otherwise specified, no more than 6 Co-op credits may be used in the academic major and minor (combined).

FSCN 486B Internship in Fire Science Through Co-op (6)

Prerequisite: FSCN 302 and formal admission to the Co-op program (program requirements are listed on p. 246). An opportunity to combine academic theory with new, career-related experience in fire science. At least 20 hours per week must be devoted to new tasks for a total of 300 hours during the Co-op session; five to eight new tasks must be delineated in the Learning Proposal; and the course requirements must be completed. May be repeated upon approval of a new Learning Proposal that demonstrates new tasks and objectives related to fire science and that continues to advance application of academic theory in the workplace. Students may earn up to 15 credits in all internship coursework through Co-op toward a first bachelor’s degree and up to 9 credits toward a second bachelor’s degree. Co-op credits may not be used for general education requirements and, unless otherwise specified, no more than 6 Co-op credits may be used in the academic major and minor (combined).