Mark Wallace
MARK WALLACE is chief of the city of McKinney (TX) Fire Department. He formerly served as chief of the Golden (CO) Fire Department. He spent 10 years teaching courses in the Fire Science Technology Program of Aims College in Greeley, Colorado, later focusing his attention on fire and arson investigation.
In 1984, Wallace joined the adjunct faculty of the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, Maryland. In 1990, he became a lead instructor of fire arson investigation. He continues to teach seminars and conferences throughout the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, specializing in hands-on training of fire investigators using a cubical design to recreate room-and-contents fires at the flashover point.
Chief Wallace has served two terms each as president of the Denver Metro Fire Chiefs Association and of the Colorado State Fire Chiefs Association, as well as in a variety of other leadership positions. He is a graduate of the Executive Fire Officer Program at the National Fire Academy. He holds an associate's degree in fire science technology, a bachelor's degree in business administration, and a master's degree in public administration. He is also a graduate of the Denver Community Leadership Forum.
He is the sole proprietor of Fire Eagle Limited, a business providing consulting, teaching, photography, and fire investigative services. Wallace has focused on strategic planning and enhancing productivity in the fire service. For years, he has researched strategic planning, using the vast resources of the NFA Learning Resource Center. Wallace also consults and teaches strategic planning and fire prevention topics. His goal has been to concentrate on the creation of effective strategic planning throughout the fire service.
In 1994, Wallace was employed by the City of Sheridan, Colorado, as fire chief and chief building official. That same year, the city lost 30 percent of its annual revenue when a major business unexpectedly closed its doors. The city council selected Wallace to lead the city through this catastrophic time. All of the other department heads and the city manager were terminated, leaving Wallace to serve as the public safety director, with all the responsibilities of city manager, chief of police, fire chief, public works superintendent, chief building official, zoning administrator, economic development coordinator, and traffic engineer. This experience provided Wallace with a unique perspective on strategic planning and organizational change.
