According to the International Association of Women in Fire & Emergency Services, more than 6,000 women have careers in the fire service field in the United States. While 150 of these women have served as fire chief, only five are African American.

After serving as fire chiefs cumulatively for over ten years, the country’s only African American female fire chiefs met for the first time ever in Chattanooga at the Chattanooga Girls Leadership Academy (CGLA). CGLA students witnessed first hand this historical meeting Wednesday during a reception hosted by the school in partnership with the Southeast Chapter of the International Association of Black Professional Firefighters. During the hour-long meeting, students took photographs with the fire chiefs to capture the historical milestone and engaged in thoughtful discussions with the distinguished leaders about many topics including: education, obstacles females face in leadership positions, and career opportunities for females in the pubic service field.

Fire Chiefs Rosemary Cloud, Debra Pryor of Berkeley, Jean Frye of McComb, Toni Dixon, and Teresa Everett will be formally recognized by their peers at the Southeast Chapter of the International Association of Black Professional Fire Fighters’ annual conference held at the Chattanooga Trade and Convention Center from November 4 through November 6.