Introduction
Welcome to our guide to diversity in the US fire service. This guide will walk you through resources about current, historical, and potential future diversity. As of 2017 only 18.2% of career firefighters were people of color, and only 4.5% were women, according to the NFPA Fire Department Profile. This guide includes links to books, articles, videos, online resources, inclusivity initiatives, and historical information about diversity in the fire service. If you want to read more about women in the fire service, we have a guide for that too.
IFSI Library Lending Policies
Local Lending (Illinois Residents Only)
- The checkout period is 4 weeks.
- Extensions are considered individually.
- Pick up requested materials at the library circulation desk.
- Bring your photo ID to set up a lending account.
Interlibrary Loan (ILL)
- The checkout period is 6 weeks.
- IFSI can send materials directly to your local public library through Interlibrary Loan.
- You must have a public library card.
- It may take up to two weeks for items to arrive.
Need help?
We're happy to help you find any of these items! Many of our articles don't have call numbers but we can find them for you, just ask.
We are also happy to help you with your research beyond what items appear on this libguide. Contact us via phone or email any time. Our contact information is on the right.
About the IFSI Library
The Illinois Fire Service Institute Library contains books, codes and standards, DVDs, CDs, periodicals, manuals, e-resources, audiobooks, and other fire emergency resources, totaling over 65,000 items. We serve all first responders in the state of Illinois. Materials can be requested in person, by phone or email, or online through our catalog. You can search our catalog by title, author, keyword, subject, or publisher, and choose the formats you want to see. Enter as few or as many search terms as you would like; the more search terms you use the fewer results you'll get, but the results will be more specific. If you live in Illinois and have a public library card, we can send materials to your public library via interlibrary loan. Anyone is also welcome to visit us in person!
Both images sourced from IAFC.
Did you know that the first recorded female firefighter in the United States was Molly Williams, a black enslaved woman in 1818 New York? Read more about her in the book Molly by Golly, linked in this guide's books and articles page.
- GUIDE FOR CREATING A DIVERSE AND INCLUSIVE DEPARTMENT"This Guide for Creating a Diverse and Inclusive Department will direct you on the correct
path for creating a department that employs diverse and inclusive practices and properly
represents the community you serve. The users of this Guide will be able to create and
support a mission-driven, community supported workforce that feels valued and is truly prepared to collectively take on the all-hazard first responder needs in your region"
Librarian
IFSI Library Information
Library Hours:
8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Monday - Friday
Special operating hours may be held during events.
IFSI Library Staff:
Lian Ruan, Head Librarian: lruan@illinois.edu
Diane Richardson, Reference & User Training Librarian: dlrichar@illinois.edu
David Ehrenhart, Archivist and Metadata Librarian: ehrenha1@illinois.edu