December 5, 2023
Bruce
Woods named Regents Fellow Service Award winner
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Known
for his passion and leadership to others, Bruce Woods’ dedication to the fire
service has earned him The Texas A&M University
System 2023 Regents Fellow Service Award.
The Regents Fellow Service
Award recognizes 12 Texas A&M University System employees who have made extraordinary
contributions to their agencies and the people of Texas.
Starting his career in fire
response more than 40 years ago, Woods quickly developed into a strong leader,
earning him more than eight state and national awards in recognition of his
leadership in fire response, prevention, preparedness and mitigation.
Woods credits his high school
summer baseball coach, Woody Sevinson, who was the fire chief of College
Station at that time, for introducing him to the fire service. After Sevinson’s
introduction and a presentation from Texas Engineering Extension Service, Woods
knew that the fire service was his calling.
Woods began his career in
public service as a firefighter and emergency medical technician with the city
of Bryan, Texas in 1980. After nine years of service with the city, Woods
earned his first fire chief role at The Woodlands Fire Department, Inc, in The
Woodlands, Texas. In this role, Woods served as a crucial advocate for the
ability of fire department employees to be certified by the Texas Commission in
Fire Protection, managed the construction of two new fire stations and
completed more than $5 million in major capital improvement projects.
Following his service in The
Woodlands, Woods took on the challenge of serving as the fire chief and
emergency management coordinator for the city of Copperas Cove Fire Department.
It was here that Woods helped modernize and improve the effectiveness of the
department’s emergency management operations through the construction of
Copperas Cove Fire Station No. 3 and the acquisition of new self-contained
breathing apparatus.
Woods then joined Texas
A&M Forest Service in 2003, serving as the Chief Fire Training Coordinator,
leading fire training efforts and directing four Texas A&M Forest Service
wildland fire academies.
Since 2007, Bruce has served
as the Wildfire Mitigation and Prevention Department Head, becoming the first leader
for the newly created department. Through this role, Woods oversees mitigation
and fuels programs as well as the agency’s wildfire prevention campaigns.
In his service to Texas
A&M Forest Service, Woods has enacted 12 progressive major fire prevention
campaigns that have decreased human-caused wildfires by 40%. Woods also
designed and managed the Texas Community Wildfire Protection Plan process that
has been completed and adopted by 83 subdivisions across the state, impacting
more than 10 million people.
Al Davis, Texas A&M
Forest Service Director, said in a nomination letter for the award that Woods
exemplifies the term “service” through his leadership and life’s commitment to
serving the people of Texas.
Most notable in Woods’ time
in leadership has been the development of his team and employees through
fostering a positive mentoring environment for leadership building.
“He is a true leader in the
fire service and continues to demonstrate his knowledge and willingness to
participate in various functions which allow him to share his knowledge and
positive influence on others,” wrote former State Firefighters’ & Fire
Marshals’ Association of Texas Executive Director Chris Barron in support of
Woods’ nomination.
On reflection of the most rewarding
aspects of his career, Woods looks to his involvement in developing successful
employees, instructing fire and incident training, his deployment on large
incident responses as a member of Texas A&M Forest Service Lone Star
Incident Management Team and applying strategic planning to create innovative
proactive programs that directly help communities reduce the impact of fire.
“Under Bruce’s leadership, this
group has helped further the agency’s mission and our key functions of building
capacity of others and protecting lives and property,” wrote Davis.
Woods currently serves on numerous
state and national committees including the Southern Group of State Foresters Wildland
Urban Interface Council and the Wildland Fire Policy Committee sponsored by the
International Association of Fire Chiefs.
The threat of the loss of
life and damage posed by wildfires serve as a continuous motivation in Woods’
career as he works to implement successful wildfire mitigation and prevention
programs, develop communication and planning strategies and empowering his
team.
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Contacts:
Texas A&M Forest Service
Communications, (979) 458-6606, newsmedia@tfs.tamu.edu