The FIRST IN Story
About FIRST IN
FIRST IN is a woman-owned business founded in 2007 by Michele Ellis-Richards, a retired Fire Captain and Emergency Services professional with over 35 years of experience.
Because of our experience in professional emergency response, it has allowed us to develop a training methodology that focuses on hands-on, realistic, scenario-based training to solidify learning and ensures student confidence in skills.
Our instructors pride ourselves in our backgrounds, which affords us the ability to share our experience to the benefit of our students.
Michele Ellis-Richards CEO & Founder Education + Qualifications
Certified Fire Service Instructor
25 Years Fire Service Experience – Ret’d Fire Captain
Certified Emergency Management Specialist
35 Years Emergency Medical Services (EMT)
California Special Training Institute Hazardous Materials Instructor
ICS/SEMS/NIMS/Emergency Operations Instructor
BS Organizational Management and Leadership
"As a veteran first responder, I’ve been in the trenches and the literal line of fire. We use that experience to harness the knowledge of professional responders who pass on real-life lessons and information as we train our students. We know what works and what doesn’t — because we’ve been there. You won’t find that in-depth knowledge in a training manual or an online training course."
– Michele Ellis-Richards
Highly Personalized
One size does NOT fit all when it comes to our trainings. We know that each company has unique cultures, environments and needs. Chemical spills and leaks happen, heart attacks and diabetic emergencies happen, fires happen, and natural disasters happen. Do you and your team have the skills, knowledge, and preparation to mitigate those types of emergencies? Our highly personalized approach takes those differences into account. Because we spend time hand-picking your instructors and assisting you in developing your goals and objectives, we’re confident that each training will fit your specific needs.
Built on Teamwork
In an emergency situation, responding as a team gives you the best outcome. The same holds true for our business. All of our instructors are either current or retired firefighters, EMS, nursing, or law enforcement personnel with impeccable backgrounds. But we look beyond credentials. Our instructors define us: enthusiastic, energetic, and engaging. Just as we encourage you to work together for the best results, we are a close-knit team that relies on and respects one another, to your benefit.
Commitment to Help Others
Our commitment to help others drives us. First, it drove us to save lives on the front lines. Now, it spills over into training others to do the same. We are truly gratified when empowering people to become confident and self-sufficient. Knowing that our work lives on in the thousands of employees we’ve trained is tremendously satisfying and inspires us to do our best.
FIRST IN Gallery
FIRST IN prides itself on realistic, hands-on, and scenario-based training. We want our students to be confident in their skills but have fun too!
Enjoy some of our pictures from various types of training through the years! FIRST IN students are the BEST!
