Idaho Falls city council to approve partnership with ISU paramedics program

The Idaho Falls city council will officially approve an agreement on Thursday night between the Idaho Falls Fire Department and Idaho State University’s paramedics program.

The Idaho Falls Fire Department will provide lab instructors for the classes. It said in the past, employees attended BYU-Idaho’s paramedic program, but that program has been terminated.

ISU said this a huge benefit to Southeastern Idaho because it fills that needed gap. Students will be able to train locally and not have to go out of state.

Michael Mikitish, the emergency service department chair on ISU’s Meridian campus, said ISU is a leader in health science and this is a great opportunity to help expand that. He said it’s a great opportunity for ISU to expand their secondary education outreach as well.

Mikitish said the expansion is exciting.

“It’s a great idea,” he said. “It’s always been a dream to start here in Meridian and move it over to Idaho Falls and Pocatello and finally, we have captured that part of the dream.”

ISU will pay the city based on the number of students enrolled in the program. It could be as low as $8,400 for 1-6 students and as high as $28,000 for 19-24 students.