During summer 2019, the Jasmine Jahanshahi Fire Safety Foundation launched its first grant program to support project proposals of partner institutions that embraced our Foundation’s mission of promoting fire safety to students traveling abroad. We are proud to announce that six institutions were selected to receive funding for projects that will be implemented during the 2019-2020 academic year.
Berkeley, California Fire Department’s Every Bear Goes Home program will receive grant funding to support presentations for fraternities, sororities and campus co-ops at University of California, Berkeley to provide education on alcohol and drug education, fire and life safety, sexual assault, and situational awareness. Firefighter/paramedic and managing director of Every Bear Goes Home Kristin Tucker Tinney designs and facilitates these presentations to ensure that every UC student she encounters has a working smoke detector wherever they reside.
Miami University in Ohio’s Global Initiatives department will receive grant support for their proposal to provide fire safety training and resources to the 600+ students who use third-party housing programs when studying abroad each year. The training will involve presentations by the Miami University Police Department and the Oxford, Ohio Fire Marshal. Director of Education Abroad Ryan Dye will provide 50 smoke detectors for students to check out during their travels and return after their semester abroad.
Molloy College will receive grant support for their proposal to provide students studying abroad with smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors to use in their residences with host families overseas. At the completion of their time abroad, the students will gift their life safety equipment to their host families along with fire prevention resources. Molloy College Fire Safety Officer William Hempstead will provide students with training to install and test their smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and ensure that students are adequately prepared to share these tools with their host families.
Regis University’s Office of Global Education will receive grant support for a project that will invite students to engage in fire prevention by creating their own educational outreach toolkit to spread awareness about fire safety among their peers. Director of Study Abroad Naomi Olsen also proposed to update the legal Memoranda of Understanding for Regis’s study abroad programs to include a stipulation that the residential accommodations provided to students must address the need for smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
Texas Woman University’s Education Abroad Office will receive grant support to increase fire safety education for students and university staff participating in TWU faculty-led abroad courses. The program will distribute printed resource materials and fire safety equipment to education abroad participants and expand knowledge related to fire safety standards outside of the United States. TWU Education Abroad will integrate fire safety information, JJFSF resources, and best practices into required online pre-departure materials and implement an experiential learning exercise into required in-person pre-departure orientation. Director of Education Abroad Carolyn Becker will collaborate with TWU’s department of Risk Management and community education partners for in-person, practical training for university faculty and staff related to fire safety during required annual health, safety, and risk management training for employees leading abroad courses.
University of Manitoba’s Office of Risk Management and Environmental Health and Safety will receive grant support to develop an information package for students traveling abroad which will include basic fire safety information such as proper use of power bars and extension cords, charger safety for laptops and phones, space heater safety, how to test and look for smoke detectors and carbon monoxide alarms, and checking evacuation routes, pull stations, and fire extinguishers. Safety coordinator Caroline Gebel will also offer students fire extinguisher training through the use of a Bullex fire simulator where students can actually use an extinguisher to put out a fire.
These project proposals serve as innovative examples of opportunities to implement the mission of the Jasmine Jahanshahi Fire Safety Foundation and foster collaboration between education abroad programs and campus health and safety departments. There will be another opportunity to apply for grant funding at the end of 2019 and we highly encourage our partner institutions to submit proposals. For more information, contact directors@firesafetyfoundation.org.