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CommentsDousing Language Barriers. Phoenix Firefighters learn Spanish through Immersion Program
Coty Dolores Miranda
Imagine having the worst day of your life. You call 911 and four guys show up at your house and none of them understand a word you’re saying.
This scenario is one example of why the city’s Fire Department implemented the Spanish Immersion Program that acquaints non-Spanish speaking firefighters with the lingua de Espanol.
Since it began in 2001 (championed by Phoenix Fire Chief Bob Kahn, then the new assistant chief), more than 300 men and women have completed the department’s immersion program and received certification.
The unique program places firefighters in Station 32 at Baseline and 42nd Street, or Station 58 at Dobbins and 48th for four months of language immersion. During this period the firefighters continue their normal firefighting/EMS duties while attending two to three hours of Spanish classes daily.
In September, a new program was added that puts roving instructors in the city’s other fire stations – a practice that allows firefighters who work together to learn together also.
The Fire Department Spanish Immersion Program doesn’t stop at the station doors. Another component, according to Station 58’s Spanish instructor Ardell Deliz, is community involvement.
“We go out and interact with the community – say there’s a Spanish speaking greeter at Fry’s – we ask them if they’d mind if we engage them in conversation. We also go to the clinic in Guadalupe,” says Deliz, 32, a firefighter/paramedic born in Puerto Rico. “The Hispanic community here is so open; they embrace us. They see these guys are trying to learn the language and they love us for it and are happy to help.”
“We do all the things we can do to expose them to the Latino community – even going to Ranch Market and talking with people,” says Captain Hugh O. Chase, who oversees the city-wide program.
Deliz says the immersion program doesn’t prepare firefighters “to necessarily give a presentation,” but does help them communicate better on the job that often has them as first-responders to medical emergencies.
The Phoenix Fire Department has set a goal of 50 percent bilingual ability for their firefighters and paramedics.
