Since 2001, the Forest Grove Fire Department and the Forest Grove School District have offered a Fire Cadet Program at Forest Grove High School.

The program is certified through the State of Oregon Education System and is available to students during their Junior and Senior Year of High School.  Students in the program receive training towards achieving the standards for the NFPA Firefighter 1 Certification through the State of Oregon. 

All high school students in their Junior and Senior years are eligible to enroll in this program.  Approximately 12 to 15 students are taken into the program each year, students are selected based on grades, attendance, and conduct at the high school.  Almost all instruction is completed at the Forest Grove Fire Station, where department staff who instruct the course are also licensed high school teachers by the State of Oregon.  In addition to the fire training that is provided, the students are also taught safe working practices, teamwork, communication skills, dedication to their community, and about the expectation that all work should be completed correctly.  We feel that all of these are valuable skills that the students can use later in life regardless of their career choice. 

Starting with the 2009-2010 school year students who were Juniors during the Firefighter 1 course will be eligible to attend the Firefighter 2 course which will be offered with our neighbors at the Cornelius Fire Department.  This partnership allows the students to remain in the fire service during their final two years of high school and creates additional exposure for the students to our career.  During the Firefighter 2 course students will be trained as EMS First Responders, and will also learn about more advanced firefighting practices as well as hazardous materials and wildland firefighting.    

It is our belief that through this program, students will learn some of the things that are important to a successful career in the fire service.  Through this knowledge they will be able to decide if this is a profession they would like to choose in their post high school lives.  Second to this, we want to provide the students with skills that they can use as they go on to college or other endeavors.

The Cadet Program has also become a good source for complimenting our own volunteer program, since the program started in 2001 nearly half of the students have joined the department as volunteers.  Currently nine former Cadets (roughly 1/3 of our current volunteer roster) are volunteer firefighters with Forest Grove Fire & Rescue.  Two of our alumni are even employed with our agency, one as a Firefighter Paramedic, and another who works in our Fire Prevention Division.