AN FDNY BREAKTHROUGH

An FDNY Breakthrough

Mayor Bloomberg and Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta were understandably elated by the results of the recent written test for Firefighter. Minority test-takers comprised 38 percent of those who passed the exam; more importantly, they made up 33 percent of those who were among the top 4,000 scorers and therefore most likely to be appointed from the list.

Candidates still have a couple of hurdles to go, most notably a physical exam, before they can be hired. But after years of chipping away to get a more diverse firefighting force, the city finally seems to have made a significant dent. While 91 percent of firefighters are white, the racial makeup figures to be transformed over the next few years, and the impact is likely to have a ripple effect for years to come.

Surprisingly, that did not seem to be the view of Firefighter John Coombs, who is president of the FDNY Vulcan Society of black firefighters. Where the Mayor called the results "a huge improvement," Mr. Coombs seemed to see the glass as more than half-empty, telling this newspaper's Ari Paul, "There was some change, but does it help?"

He said he would reserve judgment until he saw the first graduating class based on the list emerge from the Fire Academy. But while caution may be a natural product of past disappointments, the results from this written exam seem like something the Vulcans would want to cheer and take credit for.

The organization has been the driving force behind a U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit alleging that the previous two Firefighter tests, given in 1999 and 2002, were discriminatory because they had a disparate impact on minority candidates.

As we've noted before, we're dubious about the concept of disparate impact; if a test is deemed job-related and fair at the time that it's given, it should not be blamed if the results it produces show one ethnic or racial group doing better than another. All groups should be assured of equal opportunity; equal success is up to the competitors.

But it could certainly be argued that, after several past recruiting drives by the Fire Department didn't accomplish their goal of attracting more successful minority candidates, this one has paid off. City officials have generally been reluctant to concede there was anything flawed about those prior drives, but Mr. Scoppetta and the Mayor made clear they believed the more-intensive and widespread recruiting done this time was what made the difference.

Led by Michele Maglione, FDNY recruiters went to nearly 10 times as many community events as during the 2002 recruiting campaign to maximize awareness of the job and its benefits, and particularly focused on minority neighborhoods.

"This job sells itself," Ms. Maglione said last week.

The percentage of passing minority candidates still falls short of their representation in the city, but that should not be a surprise, and the closing of the gap is certainly encouraging. When a department has been predominantly white as long as the Fire Department has been, it can breed beliefs, however mistaken or exaggerated they may be, that it is less hospitable to people of color.

The more integrated the FDNY becomes, the faster such misconceptions will perish. The numbers will tell a story, but a far more resonant one will emanate from those new minority firefighters, who will stand as visible examples in communities throughout the city of what the department can offer anyone with the intelligence, skill and courage to make the grade as one of New York's Bravest.