Chasing Dreams and Saving Lives at the NextGen Responders Academy
![Abbi Marcel wears her fire gear while listening to an instructor.]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1770235322/madisonk12wius/paggn70vgefsiuphue9d/webthumb.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1770235322/madisonk12wius/paggn70vgefsiuphue9d/webthumb.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1770235322/madisonk12wius/paggn70vgefsiuphue9d/webthumb.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_4/v1770235322/madisonk12wius/paggn70vgefsiuphue9d/webthumb.jpg","width":1200},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_5/v1770235322/madisonk12wius/paggn70vgefsiuphue9d/webthumb.jpg","width":1600}])
What if you could graduate high school with multiple state certifications, a path to a $80,000-a-year career and the skills to save a life — all without spending a dime on tuition?
For students in the NextGen Responders Academy, that isn't a pipe dream; it's their weekday mornings.
The academy, hosted at Madison College, allows MMSD juniors and seniors to spend half their school day immersed in professional Emergency Medical Responder or firefighter training. That means that on any given day students could be learning life-saving CPR skills, how to move through a burning building for search-and-rescue or practicing carrying a 35-foot ladder.
"It gets them out of the classroom setting to come in here and do something different, it’s a great experience" Madison College instructor Will Boone said. "The academy prepares students for paramedic school, or to get hired right out of high school as a firefighter.”
Madison College instructor Will Boone demonstrates the correct way to carry a downed firefighter.
The curriculum at the NextGen Responders Academy is designed to treat teenagers like professionals-in-training rather than high school students. Boone places a high premium on maturity, requiring students to manage their own certifications and meet strict physical standards.
"They put a lot of pressure on us, but not really pressure you can’t handle," Abbi Marcel, a junior at Memorial High School said. "They know that we’re young, but they want to teach us to be adults."
Marcel decided to enroll in the academy after a family friend went through the program and landed an internship for the Madison Fire Department immediately after graduation.
She started with the EMR program in the fall, and after completing her certifications — which includes CPR, stabilizing limbs and administering injections — decided to sign up to learn firefighting in the spring.
“The difference so far is that EMR was a lot of paperwork and mental preparation, and firefighting is way more physical," Marcel said. "I’m a person that doesn't like sitting down all day, so this class and career are really appealing to me.”
One of her first challenges in the firefighting course is mastering "donning and doffing" of their heavy protective equipment. Students are drilled constantly to reduce their time to meet the state requirement of being fully geared up in under 120 seconds.
Memorial student Abbi Marcel loves having the opportunity to learn with her hands during class.
But there are many other skills students learn throughout the semester, like how to perform a search and rescue in a dark, smoky building, how to save a stuck firefighter and much more.
Once Marcel completes the firefighting course, she plans on returning her senior year to take an EMT program, which is a step above EMR.
By securing certifications before turning 18, students become "golden candidates" for departments looking for long-term stability and high-level training in young recruits.
"It opens up every door possible — a lot of places would love to hire an 18 to 20-year-old with all their certifications," Boone said. "Fire departments know they’ll get a solid 30 years out of these kids, and then they’re all going to be able to retire when they're 52 years old."
For Ruben Oler, a junior at West High School, the academy is a way to not only secure a good-paying job, but also turn childhood imagination into reality.
“I feel like a little kid every time I walk in the building — I used to play firefighter as a little boy,” he said. “Instead of going to campus and doing normal classes I get to come here and do exactly what I want to do after graduation.”
West student Ruben Oler prepares to put on all his safety gear in under 120 seconds.
Like Marcel, Oler plans to extend his training into his senior year to secure an EMT license through MMSD and Madison College. His end goal is to land a nationally recognized internship with the Western Lakes Fire District — the same objective Marcel has.
“The NextGen Academy is such an incredible opportunity and a great environment, plus it’s a great way to make friends,” he said. “Being a firefighter is an incredible risk and is such an incredible responsibility, but I want to do this as a career because I truly believe that I can make a difference.”
If you or your student are interested in the NextGen Responders Academy, reach out to your school counselor to learn more.