FIRE First Amendment Scholarship Competition

Mental health challenges in the fire service are often described as ‘well known’ and widespread. But do we truly understand what the most pressing mental health issues are, why they persist, or how the mental health of firefighters compares to the general population?”

As we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say, we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknowns—the ones we don’t know, we don’t know. It is those in the latter category that tend to be the difficult ones” (Donald Rumsfeld, 2002).

This year’s essay challenges you to examine what makes the fire service unique in its struggles with mental health. Is it the nature of the work, the culture, or larger societal factors? Gaining a deeper understanding of the “why” is the first step toward finding meaningful solutions to these ongoing challenges.

Prizes
1st place – $3,000
2nd place – $2,000
3rd place – $1,000
Recognition on Inside Darley video series, Darley Times newsletter, Darley media distribution, partner publications, and the InService Podcast