Polk State EMS graduates first class from paramedic partnership with Polk County Fire Rescue
Polk State College celebrated the first graduating class June 6 from the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Program’s partnership with Polk County Fire Rescue (PCFR) to fill the local workforce need for paramedics. The 13 graduates…
Polk State biology professor enrolls in EMS Program to become better instructor for students, finishes top of his class
Polk State College biology and physiology professor Jeffrey Orasky has taught at the College for nearly seven years and many students from Polk State’s Emergency Medical Services Program have come through his classroom. To learn…
GiveWell Community Foundation funds manikins for Polk State EMS
Polk State College’s Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Program is committed to providing realistic, interactive training that gives students and professionals the skills they need to be successful in the field, and thanks to a grant…
Polk State’s EMS Program steps up to fill Polk County Fire Rescue’s need for paramedics
When Polk County Fire Rescue (PCFR) approached Polk State about its need for paramedics, the College’s Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Program didn’t hesitate to figure out a way to put students on a fast track…
Thrill of critical thinking led Polk State alum to EMS career
Allison Skinner lives for the thrill of responding quickly and critically to the needs of her patients as a paramedic with Manatee County Emergency Medical Services. And after only four years on the job, Skinner…
Alum, WNCC EMS Program Director Graham Judd: Polk State’s program serves as exemplary model
Polk State College alum Graham Judd says Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Program Director Don Guillette runs a tight ship, which Judd admits he didn’t fully understand when he was a student. But after more than…
Alum, adjunct becomes Florida’s first internationally certified community paramedic
Earl Kulpa, a Polk State College alum and adjunct instructor in the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Program, recently became the first internationally certified community paramedic in Florida — among only 112 in the nation. Kulpa,…
CSX Grant Gives Students Lifelike Trauma Care Training
At Polk State College, students and first responders receive lifelike trauma care training, which is being enhanced thanks to a recent grant from CSX. CSX awarded the Polk State College Foundation with $4,485 to purchase…
Polk State EMS Student Makes History as Davenport’s First Full-Time Female Firefighter
Currently studying in Polk State’s Emergency Medical Services program: A history maker. Jessica Spell, who is pursuing her Associate in Science in EMS, was pinned as the Davenport Fire Department’s first full-time female firefighter…
A Patent and a No-Cell-Phone Policy: Five Things You Didn’t Know About EMS Program Director Don Guillette
Let’s get this straight from the start: Don Guillette did not want this article to be written. In fact, the very behind-the-scenes director of Polk State’s Emergency Medical Services program is dreading seeing his face…