2007 Safety Education Hero Award Rules and Award Criteria

The Home Safety Council Safety Education Hero Award is presented in partnership with the Congressional Fire Services Institute (CFSI). The Award seeks to recognize the outstanding efforts of the individuals who work diligently at the local level, teaching the public how to help prevent and respond to home fires and how to reduce the risk of other unintentional home injuries. The award gives preference to the programs that address the three leading causes of preventable home injury: falls, poisoning and fire/burns.

Eligibility

Eligible nominees for the award include individuals whose work or volunteer efforts involving an established injury prevention educational program resulted in a life saved or a tragedy averted in the previous calendar year (January 1- December 31, 2006). The award recipients’ work must be sanctioned by their affiliated agency.

Eligible nominees are those who currently lead, support or implement fire and life safety education programs through a career, volunteer or combination fire department or other first responder agency.

You may nominate yourself or another for this award. The winner will be selected from eligible entries received by February 1, 2007.

Award Recognition

One nominee will receive a cash honorarium in the amount of $1000, a medallion, a set of home safety education materials, and travel and expense reimbursement for two to Washington, DC. The winner will be formally announced and presented with the prizes during the CFSI Annual Fire and Emergency Services Dinner in Washington, DC in 2007. The prizes and presentation venue are subject to change, in which case a prize of equal or greater value will be awarded. The award and the prizes are not transferable.

Judging Criteria

The decisions of the Home Safety Council and Congressional Fire Services Institute on all matters relating to this contest are final. All entries will be judged on the following criteria by the Home Safety Council:

• Accuracy and appropriateness of the safety lessons and teaching method(s)
• Verifiable details related to the incident and the Nominee’s educational outreach effort
• Verification of the Nominee’s educational outreach effort(s) and involvement in the incident
• General effectiveness of the Nominee’s program/presentation, in terms of increasing safety knowledge and preventing injury and loss of life
• Leadership in promoting, supporting and implementing fire and life safety education through a career, volunteer or combination fire department or other safety agency
• Use of evaluation methods to further understand the impact of the educational program/presentation
• Breadth and reach of the program/presentation by the educator
• Extent to which the Nominee exemplifies the values, ethics and spirit of a hero in the first responder community

Official Rules and Regulations

1. Nominations must be submitted to the Home Safety Council via the online entry form on HSC’s Expert Network or through the mail. No nominations will be accepted after February 1, 2007.

a. Neither the Home Safety Council nor the Congressional Fire Services Institute is responsible for lost, unformatted, corrupted documents, misdirected or late entries.
b. Failure to comply with the official rules will result in disqualification.
c. All materials, including originals, are sent at the risk of the sender. Nomination materials will not be returned and will become the property of the Home Safety Council.
d. The Home Safety Council and the Congressional Fire Services Institute assume no responsibility.

2. Nominations will be eligible only for verified incidents in which a life or lives were saved, or an injury was prevented or minimized, in the home environment as a result of formal safety education between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2006.
3. Eligible nominees are those who currently lead, support or implement fire and life safety education programs through a career, volunteer or combination fire department or other first responder agency.

a. You may nominate yourself or another for this award.

4. The winner will be selected by February 21, 2007, and notified by telephone.
5. The winner will be required to sign and return an Award Acceptance Letter and Release within 48 hours.
6. The winner will agree to receive the award in person.
7. All entries, and the Acceptance Letter and Release, become the exclusive property of Home Safety Council and the Congressional Fire Services Institute.
8. Entry is voluntary and constitutes permission for the Home Safety Council and the Congressional Fire Services Institute to use the winner’s name and photographs without any further notice or compensation.
9. Contest is void where prohibited by law.
10. All federal, state and local laws and regulations apply.

The Home Safety Council and the Congressional Fire Services Institute have the right to revise or change the contest rules or cancel the contest at any time and without notification.