Community Help/FAQs

Get started on CPSE Community Connect with the User Guide below

Don't see the answer to your question here?

Check out the Ask CPSE Staff page or contact us at community@cpse.org for more information.

Modifying Log In
Updating Profile Information
Communities
Discussion Posts
Libraries
AI Assistants
Member Directory
Email Preferences
Privacy Controls
Terms and Conditions

Modifying Log In

Log in credentials for CPSE Community Connect are the same as the CPSE Portal. To change your log in or profile details, please log in at the CPSE Portal and make changes there. For further help, please email kjones@cpse.org.

View & Update Profile Information

To update your profile, click on circle icon with your initials on the top right of the screen. From here, you can update your bio, educational background, job history, add a picture, and update your email subscription preferences. Click the Home on the top navigation bar to return to the home page.

What is a Community?

Communities are groups of people organized around CPSE programs, designations, volunteer roles, or geographical location. As CPSE Community Connect grows, there may be more communities to join.

Communities are spaces for discussion, resource sharing, and event awareness for like-minded professionals.

When first joining a community, you will receive a notice about CPSE's Community Rules. Please read the community rules and click Agree before joining the community. You will not be allowed to access CPSE Community Connect without agreeing to the terms and conditions.

Joining a Community

You are automatically added to communities for which you meet relevant criteria. If you are not a member of a community that you believe you should, please reach out community@cpse.org for assistance or verify the correct information exists on your profile on the CPSE Portal.

To become a member of the Agency Accreditation community, you must be employed by an agency with the status of Registered, Candidate, Applicant, or Accredited with the Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI). If you work for a statused agency, but are not a member of the Accreditation community, please first verify your department is listed on your profile on the CPSE Portal.

To become a member of the Designation specific communities, you must be a current credentialed officer through the Commission on Professional Credentialing (CPC). Once you have achieved your credential, you will be added to the relevant community within one week.

Designation specific communities include:

Chief EMS Officer
Chief Fire Officer
Chief Training Officer
Fire and Emergency Services Analyst
Fire Marshal
Public Information Officer

To become a member of the Accreditation Manager community, you must be designated as the accreditation manager for your agency. If you are the accreditation manager, but do not have access to the community, please email community@cpse.org to update your agency's information.

To become a member of the Accreditation Fire Chiefs community, you must hold the role of fire chief with a CFAI accredited agency. If you are the fire chief of an accredited agency, but do not have access to the community, please email community@cpse.org to update your agency's information.

To become a member of a CPSE volunteer related community, you must serve in that volunteer role and be in good standing. Please contact your relevant CPSE representative for more information or assistance in correcting your information and gaining access.

Available CPSE volunteer communities:

CFAI Peer Assessors
CPC Peer Reviewers
Consortium Coordinators
CPC Mentors

To become a member of the Department of War Networking Group, you must be employed by an agency with the Department of War. Please verify your department is listed on your profile on the CPSE Portal for access changes.

You are automatically added to the Regional Consortium for which your state/province applies. If you were not, please verify your address on the CPSE Portal. All consortium communities are open for those who wish to join other regions to network further.

The Resources & Help community is an area reserved to access CPSE resources and Ask CPSE staff questions. This is not for open discussion. All members have access to review documentation and prior question/answers.

To leave a community, go to your profile and click on the My Account tab. Choose Community Notifications from the drop-down menu. Here, you will see a list of available communities and those to which you’ve subscribed. Select "Leave Community” under the Actions column for those you wish to leave.

Creating a Discussion Post

Start a discussion by clicking on the Create button to the right of the top navigation bar and selecting Discussion Thread. Select your desired community from the list in the dropdown. Enter your subject, type your message, attach any necessary documents, and then hit send. You can also click the Create button on the discussion thread tab within any Community to automatically open a New Thread message box within that Community.

Each community also has a unique email address. Save that to your address book, and easily start a new post like you would a regular email by sending it to that email.

Replying to a Discussion/Thread Post

To reply to a post, click on the post and then on the Reply button to the right. You can also click on the down arrow to Reply Privately to Sender. We recommend replying privately for simple comments like “me, too” that add little value to the overall discussion; and replying to the entire community when you are sharing knowledge, experience or resources that others could benefit from.

Alternatively, you can respond to a notification via email by replying to the notification email. The response will be posted to the forum as you write in the email.

Viewing & Sharing Files in the Community Library

To view resources in your community library, click on the Library tab. You can view library contents in “list” or “folder” form by clicking the respective icon to the right. Then, select the folder or subfolder to view.

Uploading a Document

There are two ways to upload a document to a community:

Option 1: Click on the Create button to the right of the top navigation bar and select Library entry, select desired community.
Option 2: Navigate to the desired community, go to the Library, and click the Create a Library Entry button.

When uploading, enter a title for your document, select the community, choose the document type, and click Next.

Accepted file formats include hyperlinks, standard files (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), webinars, images, and YouTube videos.

Attaching a Document to a Discussion Post

You can also upload a document while writing a discussion post. Simply click the Attach button at the bottom of the page, select your document, and it will be linked to your post.

CPSE Resource Library

The CPSE Resource Library is the only library that does not allow user uploads. The library contains official CPSE resources and is AI enabled for searching by using Atlas to assist.

Utilizing AI Assistants

CPSE Community Connect offers two enhancements utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) while within the forum.

General Search - The search bar in the top navigation bar utilizes AI to search your keywords across all content in communities to which you have access. This includes libraries entries, discussion posts, blog posts, etc. Results include information posted and provided by other members and should be verified and validated by the user.
Atlas - Atlas is an AI-enabled search bot who can conversationally assist with question related to CPSE documentation. Atlas is trained only on CPSE resources and will not include results from other areas of the forum.

Using the Member Directory

Accessing the Community Member Directory

To access the Community Member Directory, click on the Directory tab in the top navigation bar. Enter the first and last name of the member you’re searching for, department details, or regional information, then click the Find Members button.

Adding a Member as a Contact

To add a member as a contact:

Search for the member using the directory.
Click the Add as a Contact button to the right of their name.

Adding someone as a contact allows you to quickly access their profile and send private messages more easily from your profile.

Community Subscription Options

Members of CPSE Community Connect communities are automatically subscribed to a Daily Digest for each community to which they belong. You can adjust the preferences for each community you're a member of by going to Profile, clicking on My Account, and selecting Community Notifications.

Subscription Options

You can select from the following options:

Consolidated Daily Digest: You will receive one email each day containing the previous day's messages from all communities you've chosen to include in your Consolidated Daily Digest.
Consolidated Weekly Digest: You will receive one email every Sunday containing a review of the previous week's messages from all communities you've chosen to include in your Consolidated Weekly Digest.
Real Time: You will receive an email each time a new message is posted.
Daily Digest: You will receive one email each day containing the previous day’s messages from the individual community.
No Email: You will not receive emails from an individual community. If you've selected a Consolidated Digest, the community's content will be included in your digest.

Privacy Controls

To control the information that other members see on your profile, go to My Profile, and click on the My Account tab. Then select Privacy Settings.

From there, you can choose what information others can see or not see. Be sure to click the Save button when finished.