Jonesboro, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – April 9, 2024 – Longtime Jonesboro Fire Marshal Jason Wills now has another title to add to his name: Dr. Jason Wills.
In December, Wills was awarded his doctorate in Forensic Sciences from Oklahoma State University in Stillwater.
Wills has been with the Jonesboro Fire Department for 23 years, the last 17 as the Fire Marshal, where he investigates Arsons in Jonesboro. He received his bachelor’s degree in engineering from OSU in 1997 and his master’s degree from OSU in 2021.
“There’s not many of us period,” Wills said of fire marshals in Arkansas with their Ph.Ds. He said the OSU Forensic Sciences program offers courses that most programs don’t.
The decision to pursue his doctorate wasn’t an easy one. “I decided to beat myself up and give it a whirl,” Wills said, laughing.
While he said most of the Ph.D. program was online, it was very time-consuming. He said when his daughter was competing in horse shows, he’d be in the trailer with his computer, only peering out when she was competing.
He said one project was constructing a building on his super-charged computer. The exact materials used, including identifying the type of wood, Sheetrock, concrete, bricks, etc., had to be specified. He said the computer had to run for 24 uninterrupted hours to complete construction.
When the structure burned on the computer, it analyzed what kind of gases would be released by looking at the materials that were burning. The program tells him what happens during a fire.
Last year, Wills applied for a membership into the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and was accepted. He said most members are state medical examiners, nurses, or those working in criminal forensics fields. There are very few fire marshals as members, he said.
During his time working on his doctorate, Wills said one professor, Jamie Lord, went above and beyond the call of duty in assisting him. “I couldn’t thank him enough,” he said. “He’s an incredible guy.”
While attending OSU in 1993, Wills traveled to Oklahoma City after the Murrah Federal Building was destroyed by Timoth McVeigh.
He also attended explosives training near Tulsa.
Wills began his firefighting career at Kennett, MO, where his father was a member of the fire department. Wills also was an instructor at the Arkansas Fire Training Academy.
