RaCERS Director Recognized for Cumulative Contributions to High-Rise Building Safety

The Christian Regenhard Center’s Director, Prof. Charles Jennings, was recognized by the Fire and Life Safety Directors Association of Greater New York at their Annual Research Symposium. Jennings received the World Trade Center Memorial Award, given annually to “a person or organization who by their everyday performance embodies the ideals of fire safety and exemplifies the purpose and goals of this Association to further the cause of life safety in high-rise buildings.”

The award is especially poignant because it honors the six members of the Association who lost their lives supervising evacuation of the World Trade Center on 9/11.

Jennings’ involvement with high-rise fire safety dates back to his Master’s thesis as a student at John Jay College. Since then he has performed After Action Reviews of major fires, and written and researched topics related to high-rise fire and life safety. Jennings was on the Professional Advisory Panel of the Skyscraper Safety Campaign, following 9/11.

For the last 15 years, Jennings served as an Alternate to the National Fire Protection Association’s High-Rise Building Safety Advisory Committee, which played a major role in focusing codes and standards on improved safety.

The Regenhard Center, named for Probationary Firefighter Christian M. O. Regenhard, who died in the collapse of the World Trade Center, was formed at the College through the advocacy of Sally Regenhard.

Attendees at the event included (L to R); Jack Murphy (John Jay Adjunct Faculty and Board Member of the FSDANY; Joe Pfeifer, 1st Deputy Fire Commissioner, FDNY; Jennings, FDNY Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh; Glenn Corbett (John Jay College and RaCERS); Chief of Operations John Esposito, FDNY; and Battalion Chief Jerry Tracy (FDNY, Ret.).