Boston Fire cadet pipeline brings record number of women to recruit class, department says

The Boston Fire Department told the City Council Committee on Ways and Means on May 13 that it is expanding recruitment efforts and youth pipelines and that the most recent recruit class includes a record number of women.

Michael Gaskins, recruitment officer for the Boston Fire Department, told the committee that “in April, we had our first set of cadets, we referred to them as alpha cadets, enter into the academy class. 22 of the 23 cadets in the class add, again, value diversity and representation from Boston neighborhoods,” and he added that the class includes eight women, the most ever in a Boston recruit class.

Panelists described the cadet program as a multi‑year pipeline that prepares local candidates for the fire academy and said it includes fitness and wellness training, EAP orientation and other preparatory work. Councilors pressed department staff about residency and civil‑service rules and a newly available “hybrid” pathway under state law; department leaders said the hybrid pathway is under review and could be used for future classes but would require coordination with civil service and city offices.

Councilors and department staff also discussed outreach to Boston Public Schools, job fairs and community centers as part of recruitment. Michael Gaskins said cadet classes are intended to widen the pool of local applicants and prepare candidates for the physical and technical demands of the academy.

The committee did not take formal action on recruitment policy; councilors asked department leaders to provide additional data on demographics, retention and ranks.