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Regional Fire Protection Program

The mission of the Regional Fire Protection Program is to maintain a mostly volunteer fire company to provide fire, rescue, and related services to the Borough of State College and the Townships of College, Ferguson, and Patton, a small portion of Benner Township, and the University Park campus of Penn State University and provide the support and assistance necessary to assure the delivery of quality services.

We accomplish our mission by assuring the Alpha Fire Company has the facilities, equipment, personnel, and support necessary to deliver high quality services to the community and conform to statutory requirements. Volunteer recruiting and retention are key to the program.

The Regional Fire Protection Program is comprised of the Alpha Fire Company and the Centre Region Fire Marshal’s Office. Day to day program administration and management is handled by the Fire Director and the Alpha (Volunteer) Fire Chief. They are supported by two full-time Assistant Chiefs, two volunteer Assistant Chiefs, a full-time Office Manager, and other volunteer officers of the Alpha Fire Company. The COG Public Safety Committee has oversight of this program.

We regularly measure our performance and some of these measures are posted to this site. Performance is typically reviewed quarterly by the COG Public Safety Committee.

The Regional Fire Protection Program works hand-in-hand with the Centre Region Code Agency to provide public education, deliver fire prevention programs, and identify and implement long-term community risk reduction programs. These risk reduction programs are important to maintaining a viable, volunteer-based fire protection system, which ultimately helps control local tax rates. Fire protection rates in the Centre Region continue to be among the lowest in the nation for communities with populations over 50,000.

For more information regarding the Regional Fire Protection Program feel free to browse this site, particularly our FAQ and Performance pages. You are also welcome to contact Shawn Kauffman, CRCOG Fire Director at 814-237-4127 or by email at skauffman@centreregionfire.com.