Ventura Training Center transforms parolees into professional firefighters

On a sunny Thursday morning, a group of firefighters-in-training run through drills: They wear personal protective gear, unload firefighting tools, hook up hoses to water supplies and break down doors to force their way into buildings.

The thing these trainees have in common? They were all formerly incarcerated.

The training facility is known as the Ventura Training Center, located at 2800 Wright Road outside Camarillo. It is operated through a joint partnership between the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection — better known as Cal Fire — the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the California Conservation Corps.

Since the center opened in the fall of 2018, more than 100 formerly incarcerated men who completed training there have been hired as professional firefighters, with the vast majority joining Cal Fire, according to Battalion Chief Jeremy Brant, who oversees the center.

The program is unique in that it only enlists former California prison inmates.

"This is one of the only programs in the world like this," Brant said.

For 18 months, cadets undergo extensive firefighter training, from wildland brush fires and structure fires to hazardous material spills and public safety first aid. The center also offers education classes for participants who have not received a high school diploma and life coaching to help establish personal development goals.

"By me actually having people there that believed in me when I didn't even believe in myself and supported me, it woke something up in me," said Javon Wright, a current trainee who was formerly incarcerated for almost 9 years.

The program is highly selective and does not allow inmates with convictions of arson, sex crimes or prison escapes to enlist. After completing training, participants are certified in firefighting techniques as if they attended a regular firefighter academy, although the program does not provide EMT certification.

"This is the first, will always be the first, and it will be the model that other people will follow," said Larry Notheis, deputy director of the California Conservation Corps.

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Up to 80 trainees can participate in the program at a time, with the state paying for room, board and providing a monthly stipend for participants. The first class of participants graduated in May 2020 and groups of up to 31 cadets have continued to complete the training every few months.

A second training facility in northern California was proposed last year but the bill allocating funds for it was vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in January.

Although there have been many success stories to come out of the training center, not all who complete the training land a job. Firefighter jobs can be competitive, and applicants with criminal histories can face discrimination by fire departments, even if it is not allowed legally.

In 2020, California passed Assembly Bill 2147 into law, which created a system for formerly incarcerated firefighters to petition for their charges to be expunged from their records.

Since the bill's passage, 16 Ventura trainees have had past charges expunged from their records, according to Liz Fay, the program coordinator for the Anti-Recidivism Coalition at the training center.

Trainees may also find hope in a proposed bill allowing for increased funding to Cal Fire, Senate Bill 1062, which would allocate enough funds to bring over 1,000 additional firefighters to the state's ranks. The bill passed the California Senate earlier this year and is currently in committee with the state Assembly.

More information about the training center can be found at cdcr.ca.gov/facility-locator/conservation-camps/ventura.

Editor's Note: This story has been updated with the correct name spelling of California Conservation Corps. Senior Deputy Director Larry Notheis.

Jeremy Childs is a breaking news and general assignment reporter for the Ventura County Star. He can be reached at 805-437-0208, jeremy.childs@vcstar.com, and on Twitter @Jeremy_Childs.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Ventura Training Center turns parolees into professional firefighters