2012 Fire Science Graduate Lindsay Jones receives Awards

Earlier this month Lindsay Jones, a May 2012 Fire Science graduate was the recipient of the Asa S. Knowles Student of the Year Award given by the Career Planning and Placement Department, and the 2012 University Academic Achievement Award for her attainment of a 4.0 GPA for the last two academic semesters. Besides receiving these two prestigious awards, Lindsay’s academic success followed her as she graduated NJCU Summa Cum Laude with a perfect 4.0 GPA.

Lindsay Jones has always had an interest in the fire service. Her family has been involved for many years and Lindsay herself has been a member of the Herbertsville Fire Company, Brick, NJ since 2008. Jones received her A.S. degree from Ocean County College. Knowing that “fire science is a great program at NJCU”, she transferred in 2010 and graduated this month with a Bachelor of Science degree in Fire Science. Being from South Jersey, Jones took mostly online and Communiversity courses. However, she was also wanting that hands on experience, and decided that she would pursue a cooperative learning experience. After working together with Dean Brianik in the Career Planning and Placement Department, her first cooperative was set. Jones was placed with the New Jersey State Police Arson and Bomb Squad. Jones discovered the experience so invaluable that she decided to participate in a second cooperative learning experience, this time with the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office. Her experiences and successes with her cooperatives enabled her to be worthy of the Asa. S. Knowles Student of the Year Award. “Each year, The New Jersey City University Office of Academic Career Planning and Placement selects students who best showcase the success of its Cooperative Education Program” (Awards Ceremony, Office of Academic Career Planning and Placement, 2010).

Lindsay knew she made the right choice by attending NJCU, “The NJCU fire science program is not just all fire science. It was a well rounded education driven by motivated, intelligent people from all different backgrounds in and out of the fire service. The classes were engaging and relevant to today's hazards and challenges. The material allowed me to think with an open mind, one thing that is imperative to the field that I want to get into. Many people would think that a degree in Fire Science is a very specific field to get into but quite to the contrary, I gained a world of knowledge in many different areas. No matter what class, from Collapse of Burning Buildings to Hazmat and Problems in Fire Engineering, I was able to completely immerse myself in the information and comprehend everything fully. Although class work is no substitute for real life experience, what I am coming away with now is a solid foundation and confidence to go accomplish any goals. The two internships I took part in with the NJ State Police Arson and Bomb Squad and the Ocean County Prosecutor's office Arson Unit were two of the best experiences I have ever had in my life! I was able to learn even more and put to use the knowledge I already had. Those types of experiences are really what you make of them. I truly made the best, and came away with valuable networking contacts and rewarding/significant experiences.”

Lindsay’s next educational goal is to attain her Master of Public Administration degree