Rhoda Mae Kerr is a fourth-generation firefighter, a 20-year fire service veteran and chief of the Little Rock (Ark.) Fire Department. She holds an associate's degree in fire technology, a bachelor's degree in physical education and health, and a master's degree in public administration. In addition, she is a graduate of the National Fire Academy's Executive Fire Officer Program and attended Harvard University's program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government.

Kerr currently serves as the chair of the Human Relations Committee of the International Association of Fire Chiefs and as the president of the National Society of Executive Fire Officers. Fire Chief recently spoke with her regarding NSEFO and its upcoming 18th Annual National Conference, to be held Nov. 7-9 in Little Rock.

Tell us a little about NSEFO and what it does.

NSEFO's mission is to support the National Fire Academy and other federal fire programs, to provide opportunities for executive development, and to develop and support an executive fire officer networking system. We work toward this goal in a number of ways. One of the more visible efforts is our sponsorship of various aspects of the EFO Graduate Symposium.

What has been your personal involvement with the organization?

I entered the EFO program in 1992, became a member of NSEFO in 1993 and have been involved with the organization ever since. Over the years, that involvement has grown from simply being a member and attending functions to becoming more involved with support of activities, and finally serving as an officer of the organization. This is my third year as president of NSEFO, and I was vice president for a year and a half prior to that.

Is there such a thing as “typical” NSEFO member?

Most of our 500 members are in career positions, although we do have volunteer and combination department members as well — there are simply many more career folks going through the EFO program. We do, however, have some members who have gone through the EFO program but who are not actually chief officers. For example, Little Rock's former emergency services manager had gone through the EFO program and was a member of NSEFO, but he was actually the city's emergency management administrator.

As president of NSEFO, I'd encourage junior officers in particular to become members. NSEFO membership is available if you are an EFO program student or graduate. But even if you become a member as a captain or as a junior officer, or even as a senior officer who hasn't been through EFO, the membership benefits are the same, the only difference being that in one case you vote and one you don't. But you can participate fully in all initiatives and events.

What about the NSEFO conference itself; what kind of programming is offered?

This year's conference theme is “Polishing the Gold.” That theme, of course, references the gold or the brass that we wear on our collars, but it applies to anyone who is in an executive or in a middle-manager position in a preparedness or emergency response organization. The intent of the program is to provide the information necessary to keep you at the pinnacle of professionalism and leadership ability.

James Lee Witt, currently the CEO of the International Code Council and formerly the director of FEMA, will be our keynote speaker.

The conference programming covers a range of topics. One of our workshops is “The View from Above.” We have the city manager from here in Little Rock and the president of the International City/County Management Association and Congressman Robert Etheridge from North Carolina giving a panel presentation on the characteristics of successful city organizations and what they look for in a fire chief. We're doing a similar program with executive recruiters. We're also going to have discussions and workshops on ethics and advocacy, dealing with the media, and appropriate media relations. There will be a range of offerings. And of course, there will be some social functions with some opportunities to network and relax and enjoy a little bit of Little Rock.

How many attendees to you expect?

We're shooting for 200. It's a little hard to judge what this year will be like because we had to cancel last year's conference. It would have been right on the heels of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and we knew the fire service had its attention elsewhere.

And if people want more information, or want to register?

They should go to the NSEFO Web site at www.nsefo.org. There they'll find more information about the program, the accommodations, and they can even register online. Or they can call 501-918-3705.