ROCKFORD — The commission responsible for hiring the next Rockford fire chief has narrowed its search down to five finalists, including four in-house candidates.
The Fire and Police Commission, a three-member board that oversees hiring and promotions in both departments, announced on Wednesday its finalists.
A hire will be made this fall after a couple opportunities for the public to hear from the finalsits.
The finalists
Here are the five finalists and their credentials as offered by the commission:
- Jeffrey Althoff: District chief, Rockford Fire Department, 25 years of service. Althoff has a bachelor’s degree in general studies and a master’s in public safety administration. He holds a chief fire officer designation by the Center for Public Safety Excellence and the Illinois Professional Emergency Manager accreditation by the Illinois Emergency Management Agency.
- Scott Bavery: Assistant fire chief, Madison Fire Department, 28 years of service. Bavery holds a bachelor’s degree in community health education and a master’s in emergency management services. He has a chief fire officer designation by the Center for Public Safety Excellence.
- Matthew Cordonnier: Logistics chief, Rockford Fire Department, 15 years of service. Cordonnier holds a bachelor’s degree in fire administration and has ongoing studies toward a master’s in executive fire leadership and public administration. He has a chief fire officer designation by the Center for Public Safety Excellence and the Illinois Professional Emergency Manager accreditation by the Illinois Emergency Management Agency.
- Timothy Morris: Captain/fire prevention coordinator, Rockford Fire Department, 24 years of service. Morris has a bachelor’s degree in public fire administration and is pursuing a master of executive leadership. He is working toward the chief fire officer designation through the Center for Public Safety Excellence.
- Rebecca Tyo: Captain, Rockford Fire Department, 16 years of service. Tyo has a bachelor’s and master’s degree in kinesiology. She holds the fire officer (FO) designation by the Center for Public Safety Excellence and the Illinois Professional Emergency Manager accreditation by the Illinois Emergency Management Agency.
Virtual Q & A
You can hear from the finalists at an upcoming virtual question and answer forum from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 23. To join, go to https://tinyurl.com/rfdvirtualforum…