My future research aspirations are personal, and professional. As a board member of the volunteer fire department we need to learn and develop new ways to reach community members about upcoming educational events. We also need to increase our budget while lowering our spending. I would like to incorporate research into the discussion with the board to develop a better idea on how many volunteers we realistically need on hand every day. Our district has grown significantly over the last five years, with the incorporation of another district with our own. If we can use the new total number of residences and businesses in the community, then we can start to determine how many more people we need on hand. We can also begin to develop a new advertising plan to reach everyone in our area.
I would be interested in conducting a cost benefit analysis on the usage of old fire equipment, versus the purchase and upkeep of new fire equipment. We have so many new tools and options, but not all departments have the proper funding to buy new equipment. Instead they spend time and money trying to repair and maintain the equipment they currently own. The entire course has been a learning experience for me. I learned a lot of new and valuable information during these last few weeks.
