Merritt Kearns, a part-time professor at East Georgia State College and battalion chief with the Statesboro Fire Department, was named Bulloch County Outstanding Public Servant Officer of the year!
Chief Kearns is a part-time professor for the Fire and Emergency Services Administration (FESA) program at EGSC. He has been a professor since the beginning of the program and assisted with the original design of the FESA Bachelor's degree program that began in Spring of 2016.
Chief Kearns has been with the Statesboro Fire Department for 15 years. He became a battalion chief 3 years ago.
“Chief Merritt Kearns is an asset to the FESA program at East Georgia State College. He has been teaching in the program since its inception and has contributed so much to the growth and development of our FESA students. This award is well deserved.”
Beverley Walker, FESA program director
About the FESA Program at East Georgia State College:
EGSC’s Fire and Emergency Services Administration program offers both an associate and bachelor’s degree track. The bachelor’s track is completely online and offers challenging coursework in fire and emergency services administration, leadership, budgeting, ethics and professional development to prepare students for a leadership role in the administration and management of an emergency services organization.
The bachelors program follows the design set forth by the Fire and Emergency Services Higher Education (FESHE) curriculum created by the National Fire Academy. Both the Associate of Arts and Bachelor of Arts in Fire and Emergency Services Administration follow the career pathway that is part of the Professional Development ladder designed by FESHE. These degrees will create a career pathway for firefighters, emergency services personnel and others interested in public safety management. The Bachelor of Arts in FESA degree from EGSC is also accepted by the National Fire Academy for the Executive Fire Officer or Managing Officer programs, so students can go even further after completing their degree program.
To learn more about EGSC’s Fire and Emergency Services Administration programs, visit www.ega.edu/fesa.
