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AFG Fire Prevention and Safety Grants: The Reverse Panelist Experience
Track(s): Public Education

Cathie Patterson and Maggie Wilson, DHS/FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program

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The Assistance to Firefighters, Fire Prevention and Safety Grants (FP&S) provide for prevention and safety projects each year. Securing funding for FP&S grants can be challenging. With more than 3,000 applications received each year, less than 250 awards are issued. Applications are reviewed through a peer review process. This session will provide prospective applicants with insight into the peer review process. You will participate in hands-on exercises to learn what panelists experience when reviewing applications with the goal of improving the applicant's ability to prepare competitive narratives.

Since 2002, Cathie Patterson has worked with the FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program. She currently the Section Chief Fire Prevention and Safety grants. The two activities funded in this program are Fire Prevention and Safety and Firefighter Safety Research and Development. Prior to her current position, she promoted safety programs through her work at the International Association of Fire Chiefs, the Society of Fire Protection Engineers and the Foundation for Boating Safety. As the Section Chief for the Fire Prevention and Safety Grants, Cathie continues her commitment to safety programs through her support of projects that enhance the safety of the public and firefighters from fire and related hazards. Cathie is the Contract Officer Technical Representative for the Inter-Agency Agreement (Evaluation and Assessment project) with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Maggie Wilson has been with the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program since March, 2009 as a Fire Program Specialist. Prior to that, she worked for the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) for 10 years. In that role, Maggie directed the Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program and also managed a number of other NVFC health and safety projects, including many with the U.S. Fire Administration. Maggie received her B.A. in Psychology from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and is currently pursuing her Masters degree in Public Health at The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.