Milwaukee Fire Department details recruitment push as summer application window opens

The Milwaukee Fire Department told the Fire and Police Commission's Testing and Recruiting Committee on May 6, 2025, that it will run a firefighter recruitment campaign that began in early May and is scheduled to run through June 30, and outlined steps the department says will improve candidate readiness, retention and diversity.

The department described the recruitment as a “bucket” process—building a pool of applicants and then moving qualified candidates into selection and the department academy—and said the effort pairs marketing, community outreach and one-on-one support for candidates who need academic or fitness help. “We're looking to basically fill a bucket and then do things with the people in that bucket,” Assistant Chief Parrish said during the presentation.

The committee was told the posting opened in early May and that staff had already seen more than 200 applications within days; recruiter Jordan Dickerson reported "2 40 ish" applications on the first day of the opening.…