Colin is a photojournalist who joined Denver7 in February 2021.
BOULDER, Colo. — For City of Boulder firefighter Nikki Mastriona , joining the fire service meant stepping into a world where men made up the overwhelming majority of her colleagues.
“I think naturally we all feel that way, coming into a male dominated industry,” Mastriona said. “7% of the nation's firefighters are women, and so it's extremely intimidating. ”The intimidation often starts early — in training. Gear, tools and physical tests are typically designed with a one-size-fits-all approach that can make it harder for women to succeed.
“There was only so much that they could tell me, and so I had to do a lot of figuring this stuff out on my own in a lot of days. It was really daunting,” Mastriona said. When she struggled to find resources tailored for women, Mastriona decided to create her own. The result is Built For The Badge, a complete platform aimed at preparing women for careers in firefighting, emergency medical services, law enforcement and the military.
“I came up with the idea that I wanted everything to be in one place,” Mastriona said. According to Mastriona, the site offers physical training plans, written exam study guides, a national job board and a mentor network. It will soon be available as a mobile app.
“There’s no guesswork on what you need to be doing to prepare you to get into the fire service and then all the way up to retirement,” she said. The program has already reached women across the country, including firefighter and EMT April Ziviello in Pennsylvania.
“Learning from guys, it's, you know, they give great advice, but at the end of the day, I can't do it the same way that they do,” Ziviello said. Ziviello says shorter women face unique challenges.
“The shorter girls have to work even harder, because nothing is our size. The gear doesn't fit us. The air packs are huge on us,” she said.
“I think it's going to open up the door to a lot more connections for women in general,” Ziviello said. “And I think it's super important that we realize that there are other people out there like us. ”► Watch Colin Riley's report in the player below;Boulder firefighter Rory Loveridge agrees the public benefits when fire crews reflect the communities they serve.
“If the community that you serve is they see themselves represented in you, then that makes them feel more comfortable and ultimately leads to a better service,” Loveridge said. The launch of Built For The Badge comes at a time when Colorado fire departments face staffing struggles. Denver7 recently reported the state needs more than 2,000 firefighters and millions of dollars in new equipment to keep up with demand . Recruiting more women could help fill those gaps.
It also comes in the wake of concerns about poorly fitting gear for female firefighters. In 2022, Denver7 profiled a Fort Collins duo working to design uniforms for women in wildland firefighting . Built For The Badge offers training that accounts for women’s body mechanics, physiology and menstrual cycle-based performance.
“The biggest thing that we're trying to drive home is that women… it's not that they're not capable. They just don't have the resources,” Mastriona said.
“We don't ever want to lower the standards in this field,” she added. “You know, they're there for a reason, and so we just want to make sure that we're training women up to that standard, and supporting them. ”Mastriona plans to expand Built for the Badge to police and military prep in future phases — with the ultimate goal of making it a resource departments can offer directly to recruits.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
Boulder Fire Department Built For The Badge Colorado Firefighters Female Firefighters Fire Academy Fire Service Training Firefighter Recruitment Nikki Mastriona Women Firefighters
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