Derrick Phillips

Deputy Chief Derrick Phillips is a 30-year St. Louis Fire Department veteran. He began his career with the Department on December 5, 1994. Chief Phillips was the valedictorian of his Recruit Class despite starting a week after his classmates. He was assigned to E-30 upon graduation and later acquired his EMT-B license in 1997. As a Firefighter, he received two Distinguished Service Citations for civilian rescues and two Dressel awards for clinical saves.

On October 18, 2000, he received his first commission with the Department as a Fire Captain. Upon his promotion to Captain, Phillips was assigned to E-13 and later to E-33. Also, as a Captain, Phillips served the Department as the Public Education Officer, Public Information Officer, Projects Manager, Grant Administrator, and Chief Fire Investigator. He received an STLFD Lifesaving Award for securing grant funding for the Department.

On December 2, 2013, Chief Phillips was promoted to Battalion Chief. As a Battalion Chief, he oversaw the administration of the Training Academy as the Chief Instructor. While overseeing the Training Academy, Chief Phillips organized the Department’s Office of Homeland Security and served as the Chief Instructor and Commander of the Office of Homeland Security.

On May 26, 2021, Chief Phillips was promoted to Deputy Chief. As a Deputy Chief, he serves as the Executive Officer and Commander of the A-Shift and oversees the Office of Homeland Security. His responsibilities include overseeing the Business Office (payroll, accounting, fiscal management, grant administration, capital and operating budget creation, and EMS billing). His other responsibilities include developing and implementing policies, maintaining organizational staffing levels, and overseeing management information systems.

Since 2008, he has been an adjunct instructor for New Mexico Tech, teaching courses on Incident Response to Terrorist Bombings and Prevention and Response to Suicide Bombing Incidents. In addition, he is a subject-matter expert in WMD/RAD-NUC, having been trained in these areas at the Nevada National Security Site. Chief Phillips is also the regional coordinator for Mutual Aid, serves on the Executive Board of the local JTTF, and maintains a role with the NFPA Urban Fire Safety Working Group.

Chief Phillips also served on the Board of Directors for the NFPA Education Section and the National Information Sharing Consortium. Additionally, he serves on the Forest Park Security Group, the City of St. Louis Local Emergency Planning Committee, and the Greater St. Louis Fire Chiefs Association.

Chief Phillips was born and raised in St. Louis, MO, where he was educated in the St. Louis Public School system. He graduated from Sumner High School in 1989, where he lettered in football, basketball, baseball, and track & field.

Chief Phillips graduated from Columbia College with an Associate of Science in Business Administration. He continued his education at Columbia College, earning a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration – Summa Cum Laude. Upon graduating from Columbia College, Phillips enrolled at Arkansas State University,where he received a Master's in Public Administration.

While attending Arkansas State, Chief Phillips received notification of his enrollment at the Center for Homeland Defense at the Naval Postgraduate School. Chief Phillips pursued a second master’s degree concurrently with his MPA and graduated with a Master’s Degree in Security Studies (Homeland Defense & Security) from the Naval Postgraduate School. NPS is the number 1-ranked school in Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

His thesis on Fire Service Intelligence: Informed Strategies, Operations, and Tactics was well received, and he received his second Homeland Security Mission Award from Homeland Security Today and the Doris A. Davis Master’s Thesis Award from the Student and New Professionals Committee of the American Society of Public Administrators.

Chief Phillips also holds the coveted Chief Fire Officer (CFO) designation from the Center for Public Safety Excellence. In addition, he graduated from the Fire Service Chief Executive Officer program hosted through the Mays Business School at Texas A&M. Recently, he graduated from the IAFC’s Fire Service Executive Development Institute and completed three years at the Dr. Carl Holmes Executive Development Institute hosted annually at Dillard University.

Chief Phillips is currently a member of the American Society for Public Administration and a Public Administration Times Online columnist.

One of his favorite quotes is by Colin Powell – “There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.”