By Leslie Fuentes
Public Communications
Humble ISD’s EMT program prepares students for emergency service and healthcare careers.
“With my certification, I would like to work as an EMT during college to help pay for school while gaining experience and learning skills that will serve me well during the course of my future career,” Kingwood Park 2024 Graduate Emma Ferguson said.
During the 2023-2024 school year, Humble ISD reintroduced an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) Program aimed at preparing high school seniors for certification, laying the groundwork for future healthcare professionals while helping address the increasing demand for emergency medical care personnel in Texas and across the nation.
The EMT program is a yearlong double-blocked course open to seniors from all Humble ISD high schools. Students who successfully complete the course earn seven college credit hours.
Students in the program undergo 150 hours of in class lectures, exams, practical scenarios and clinical experiences. Students learn essential emergency service skills, including CPR, first aid management, basic life support, bandaging, back boarding, assisting in births, tourniquet application, wound packing and medication administration, among other skills.
Students also gain practical field experience by riding in ambulances during 12 or 24-hour shifts and shadowing first responders from local fire departments. To fulfill certification requirements, students must complete a minimum of six ambulance ride-outs and have contact with at least 10 patients.
In addition to offering students the opportunity to work as an EMT immediately after high school, the Humble ISD EMT program also helps students save money. Community college EMT training costs about $1,100.
Humble ISD offers its EMT course at no cost. Students can seek reimbursement for testing fees, and they earn a Basic Life Support (BLS) certificate from the American Heart Association upon completion.
Once students successfully complete the program’s requirements, they become eligible for EMT certification at both state and national levels and can take the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT) Exam.
Once students pass the NREMT exam for national certification, they undergo a background check to obtain state certification.