The Knucklehead of the Day award

Today's winner is Pompano Beach Fire Dept. Training Cmdr. Robert McCarthy. Cmdr. McCarthy was responsible for verifying the legitamacy of diplomas of those who worked at the Department. Now McCarthy is being demoted because he applied for the position of batallion chief and it was discovered the Cmdr. got a degree from a school that isn't certified.

Dumb, dumb and dumber sums this all up. At the end of the Sun-Sentinel article, Pompano Beach Fire Chief Harry Small said McCarthy had a credibility issue. I say the Cmdr has no credibility. He used his position of authority to verify other workers credentials and training when his own was sorely lacking. That really takes chutzpah and therefore the cmdr is today's Knucklehead of the Day.

Pompano fire commander demoted for getting college degree from online company
By Jean-Paul Renaudand Brian Haas

The commander responsible for verifying the legitimacy of diplomas at the Pompano Beach Fire Department will be demoted Friday after his staff discovered he applied for a position using an invalid degree in fire science.

Training Cmdr. Robert McCarthy will be relieved of his position and assigned to a fire house as a lieutenant on "C" Shift, which begins at 7:30 a.m. In demoting him, Chief Harry Small said the credibility of McCarthy's position has been "severely compromised."

"This has particular significance in that the training commander has the responsibility to `validate' all employee credentials as they relate to promotional examinations," Small wrote in a memorandum to McCarthy Monday.

In April, McCarthy, a 20-year veteran of the department, applied for the position of battalion chief, which requires candidates to have an associate's degree in fire science.

In reviewing the application for adequate qualifications, McCarthy's staff discovered their boss' diploma came from Suffield University, an online company that gives degrees for "life experience." It has not been accredited by the U.S. Department of Education.

"Your submission of an unaccredited diploma in order to qualify for the battalion chief's exam has all but made it impossible for you to continue performing the role of training commander as it relates to promotional validation," Small wrote in the memorandum.

Messages were left for McCarthy with the city's public information officer and the firefighters' union, but he could not be reached for comment.