The White County Fire Service’s Training Academy this week graduated 17 students from its first-ever Emergency Medical Technician School. The students were recognized during a ceremony on April 13th at the Cleveland Worship Center in Cleveland, Georgia.
To graduate, the students had to complete 220 hours of classroom instruction, 36 hours of clinical training, and the Georgia EMS and Trauma governed Psychomotor Exam. They are now eligible to test for the National Registry Emergency Medical Technician Certification.
The school began in October 2022 and was hosted at Truett McConnell University. The class was led by White County Firefighter/Paramedic Shad Sosebee under the direction of Fire Services Training Captain Lanier Swafford. Battalion Chief Josh Taylor assisted the class along with many other fire and EMS professionals.
The majority of the graduates are White County firefighters who continued their education and training to better respond to medical-related calls.
“Medical calls make up 65% of calls responded to by White County Fire Services,” says fire department spokesperson Bryce Barrett.
The school was also available to firefighters in surrounding counties. Students from Dawson County, Gainesville, and Union County also graduated.
Lead instructor Sosebee says he was pleased that the class had a 100% pass rate on the Psychomotor Exam.
“I consider this a major accomplishment for each of these graduates. They have been hard at work since October, and their efforts are already paying off.”
“The 100% pass rate is a testament to the quality of instruction and the hard work put in by the students,” says White County Public Safety Director David Murphy.
He called it a “major triumph” for White County to receive so many more highly trained first responders who can provide lifesaving medical services to the community.
Members of the EMT graduation class of 2023 are:
Bradley Alexander
Hudson Anderson
Bryce Barrett
John “Wesley” Broadwell, Jr.
Jackson Cantrell
Austin Hatcher
Kyleigh Johnson
Kevin Kochis
Jordan LeFevre
Malachi Patrick
Owen Pitchfork
Steven Seabolt
Alexander Staton
Terry Stewart
Jeanne Weathers
Seth Weaver
Jackson Wiley
