By: Laura Soukkavong
STOW — Fifty-three firefighters from communities across Massachusetts graduated from the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy this week, completing intensive training designed to prepare them for structure fires, hazardous materials incidents, rescues and other emergencies.
State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine announced the graduations Friday, Nov. 6, recognizing new call, volunteer and career firefighters trained at the academy’s main campus in Stow. Recruits from Hopedale and Danvers received outstanding student awards.
“Massachusetts firefighters are on the frontlines protecting their communities every day, and today’s graduates are needed now more than ever,” Davine said. “The hundreds of hours of foundational training they’ve received will provide them with the physical, mental, and technical skills to perform their jobs effectively and safely.”
The academy held two graduation ceremonies during the week. Call/Volunteer Recruit Class No. 128 graduated Nov. 4 after 15 weeks of evening and weekend training. The class included 24 firefighters representing departments in Avon, Barre, Douglas, Hopedale, Lincoln, Millbury, Princeton, Sherborn, Spencer, Sterling, Templeton, Tyngsborough, Upton, Uxbridge and Weston.
Corey Roe of the Hopedale Fire Department received the Martin H. McNamara Outstanding Student Award, which recognizes academic and practical performance throughout the call and volunteer training program.
The award honors Martin “Marty” McNamara V, a Lancaster call firefighter who died in the line of duty in 2003 while fighting a fire at a multifamily residence. One member of each call and volunteer graduating class receives the recognition.
Career Recruit Class No. 343 graduated November 6 following 10 weeks of training. The 27 members represented fire departments in Acton, Arlington, Athol, Danvers, Harwich, Hopkinton, Maynard, Natick, North Andover, North Reading, Northborough, Somerville, Sudbury, Tewksbury, Wellesley and Yarmouth.
Brett Donovan of the Danvers Fire Department received the Richard N. Bangs Outstanding Student Award, presented to a member of each career recruit class based on academic and practical skills, testing and evaluations. The award is named for a longtime chair of the Massachusetts Fire Training Council.
The Department of Fire Services described the academy’s curriculum as preparation for a broad range of situations beyond traditional firefighting. Firefighters may respond to carbon monoxide emergencies, suspected gas leaks, drug overdoses, motor vehicle crashes and people trapped in elevators or hazardous conditions.
Recruits learn to inspect, maintain and use equipment including self-contained breathing apparatus, hoses, hydrants, pumps, power tools and fire apparatus. They also study fire behavior, suppression tactics, hazardous materials response, flammable liquids, public fire education, stress management and self-rescue.
Training combines classroom lessons, physical conditioning, hands-on exercises and live-fire practice. Students first rehearse essential skills in conditions without fire before advancing to controlled burning scenarios.
To graduate, recruits must demonstrate competence in search and rescue, life safety, ladder operations, water supply, pump operations and fire attack. Exercises cover incidents ranging from small outdoor fires to fires involving multiple rooms or floors of a building.
“Massachusetts Firefighting Academy instructors draw on decades of experience in the fire service to train new recruits,” MFA Recruit Program Coordinator Dean Babineau said. “Through consistent classroom instruction and practical exercises, today’s graduates have developed the tools they’ll need to work seamlessly with veteran firefighters in their home departments and in neighboring communities as mutual aid.”
The training is intended to help new firefighters operate alongside experienced personnel in their own communities and during mutual-aid responses, when departments assist neighboring towns and cities.
The Department of Fire Services reported 53 graduates overall, although the two class counts specified in its announcement — 24 call and volunteer recruits and 27 career recruits — total 51. The release did not explain the difference.
The graduates now return to their departments with foundational training in emergency response and firefighter safety, joining local crews that serve communities throughout the Commonwealth.
Source: Massachusetts Department of Fire Services, Nov. 6, 2026.