When Great Bend High School student Trey Milsap was a youngster, he took a tour of the Great Bend Fire Station, which left him fascinated with the world of emergency response, and he is now working as a part-time firefighter for the Great Bend Fire and EMS Department all before graduating high school.
Before he zeroed in on being a firefighter, he also became interested in law enforcement as well as being an EMT. So, he signed up for ride-a-longs with local agencies for all services, and after helping work a small grass fire on his law enforcement ride-a-long, he knew his true passion was to fight fires.
Shortly after rolling alongside the professionals, he quickly enrolled in Barton’s one-semester EMT certificate program to pursue his dream of being a fireman.
“I would say that helping people on what could be their worst day and the adrenaline at a moment’s notice are what has drawn me to it,” he said.
Milsap could take the EMT course almost at no cost thanks to the state-sponsored Excel in CTE Initiative, which allows Kansas high school students to take specific career technical courses tuition-free.
While he has only spent a semester at Barton so far, Milsap said he’s had a positive experience that has helped him enter the workforce with the skills he needs.
‘Barton provided a lot of hands-on time to practice skills learned, such as placing basic airway adjuncts, for example,” he said. “The technology in the EMT program was advanced, including a new ambulance simulator inside the facility as well as a fully functioning ambulance, which both have their uses.”
Part of the program is also doing calls with our EMS partners in the area and running calls alongside them in the field, which Milsap said were invaluable.
“Our field internships are a requirement to complete the course, and they helped me a lot by allowing me to transfer what we learn in the classroom setting to real situations,” he said. “I ran a few real calls with some diversity, so I was able to perform a variety of skills.”
Milsap said his journey is just beginning. After high school, he plans to work full-time for the Great Bend Fire Department.
“I look forward to continuing my career at Great Bend Fire and EMS long-term, along with furthering my education at Barton over the next few years,” he said. “My main goals moving forward consist of obtaining more certifications in both fire and EMS fields and striving for promotions at the fire department.”
For non-high school students, Barton’s program qualifies for the Kansas Promise Scholarship, which means students can complete it at no cost. For more information about this, visit bartonccc.edu/promiseact.
For more information, contact Director of Emergency Medical Services Education Nicholas Larmer at larmern@bartonccc.eduor visit ems.bartonccc.edu.
