Dennis L. Rubin Named as Interim Fire Chief

Published on May 01, 2023

The Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas (UG) is pleased to announce the appointment of Dennis L. Rubin as Interim Fire Chief for the Kansas City, Kansas Fire Department (KCKFD). With the recent retirement announcement from former Fire Chief Michael Callahan, Unified Government County Administration moved swiftly to fill the Fire Chief position.

Rubin’s appointment as Interim Fire Chief is effective June 1, 2023.

He finished out his career as Fire Chief in both Atlanta, GA and Washington, D.C. Since his retirement, Rubin has served as an international, national, and state lecturer, as well as an adjunct faculty member for several state rescue training agencies. 

“Becoming a part of the Kansas City, Kansas Fire Department as the Interim Fire Chief is a personal and professional honor. I am looking forward to working alongside of the women and men of this great Fire Department to protect the lives and property of our community,” Rubin said. “Fire Administration and our firefighters essentially have the same vision and that is to prevent harm and to serve our citizens and visitors in their time of need.”   

Interim Chief Rubin’s educational background includes a Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership from Waldorf University, a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Fire Administration from the University of Maryland, and an Associates in Applied Science degree in Fire Science Management from the Northern Virginia Community College.

Rubin is a graduate of the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer Program (EFOP) and the Naval Post Graduate School’s Executive Leadership Course in Homeland Security. Rubin is a certified incident safety officer (ISO) and has obtained the Chief Fire Officer Designation (CFOD) and Chief Medical Officer Designation (CMOD) bestowed by the Center for Public Safety Excellence. Rubin is also a nationally registered emergency medical technician.

“It will take time to find our next full-time fire chief.  Thus, it was important to me to find a highly qualified interim fire chief with respected credentials to lead the department in the meantime,” said County Administrator, David Johnston. “We were fortunate that Chief Rubin, a person professionally recognized as a national leader in fire safety management, agreed to serve the Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas community.  I am sure that the men and women of our fire department will benefit from his wealth of experience.”

In addition to being a well-respected consultant in fire safety, Interim Chief Rubin is also an author of several emergency service and leadership textbooks as well as chair of many fire committees. His many years of experience and leadership will offer Kansas City, Kansas firefighters and the Wyandotte County community great insight, administration, and strategic planning tactics. 

Congratulations, Interim Chief Rubin!