As a boy, his career aspiration was to be on a SWAT team. As a student at Cal State San Marcos, though his academic track early on was kinesiology, he gravitated to the theater and began auditioning for every high-pressure stage role possible. 

So when Collier was at a crossroads in his post-graduate life and his stepfather figure suggested that he explore firefighting, perhaps the most surprising aspect is that Collier had never thought of it himself. Who, after all, is more willing to charge headlong into a risky situation than a firefighter? 

“I’m the person who will stop their car on the side of a busy road to help somebody rather than driving on,” Collier said. “That’s just what I do. It’s what’s in me. So for me, this job is a hand-in-glove fit.” 

Collier was speaking from a common area inside San Diego Fire Station 43, which is in Otay Mesa and has been his home away from home for the past year. On this day in late April, he had donned his gear several times to go on calls in the station’s primary engine with his firehouse colleagues – a firefighter paramedic, an engineer and a captain.  

The calls were fairly routine. Because Station 43 is in a lightly developed neighborhood only a few miles north of the Mexico border, most of the emergencies that its crews respond to are vegetation fires, car fires and incidents at the border itself – often people sustaining injuries as they try to cross into California illegally.  

Collier, 29, is less than four years into his firefighting career, which translates into this current assignment far from the heart of San Diego. He has to gradually work his way up the ranks and into more plum stations.  

But Collier still loves where he is and what he’s doing. He gladly will show off for visitors every nook and cranny of Station 43 – from the exercise space where he gets to incorporate one of his favorite activities (weightlifting) into his work hours, to the kitchen where he frequently cooks meals for the whole house, to the cherry-red fire engine that he has come to know every inch of like the back of his hand.   

“Becoming a firefighter is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made,” he said. “It’s not an easy job. When the stuff hits the fan, it sprays everywhere. But it’s also one of the most rewarding things you can do.” 

It was at CSUSM that Collier discovered the stability and self-confidence that made life as a firefighter seem realistic. He grew up in the foster system and entered the university having attended an astounding 17 different schools before he even reached high school, Olympian in Chula Vista. He arrived at CSUSM with the assistance of ACE Scholars Services, the university’s program for former foster youth. 

Collier switched his major from kinesiology to visual performing arts and threw himself into theater with abandon, ultimately starring in seven shows during his five years as a student.  

“What CSUSM gave me is the belief that I can do anything,” said Collier, who graduated in 2018. “I came into college with extreme educational deficiencies. Yet CSUSM had every tool to catch me up and help me succeed. It gave me the environment to grow.” 

Collier intended to pursue a Master of Fine Arts and a doctorate en route to becoming a theater professor, but he admits that he didn’t prepare well enough for his graduate school auditions and was delivered a harsh “reality check.” He was teaching kids at Callan Swim School when his stepdad proposed what turned out to be a fateful visit to the Heartland Fire & Rescue station in El Cajon. He was a reserve firefighter there for a year before entering the San Diego Fire Academy in 2022. 

Now Collier aims to keep climbing the ladder – both literally and figuratively – as a firefighter while not pulling it up behind him. As soon as he joined the fire service, he got involved with community outreach as part of the team tasked with recruiting the next generation of firefighters. And his next goal is to take classes toward becoming an instructor of young firefighters eager to enter the fire service.  

“I feel like that’s my next calling,” he said. “I’m trying to figure out how to give back by motivating and helping others. It gives me joy to see people be uplifted and accomplish things.”  

Media Contact

Brian Hiro, Communications Specialist

bhiro@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7306

The Wang Family Excellence Award recognizes and celebrates four outstanding CSU faculty members and one outstanding staff member who, through extraordinary commitment and dedication, have distinguished themselves by exemplary contributions and achievements. The awards for faculty are given to members of four groups of academic disciplines – Visual and Performing Arts and Letters; Natural Sciences, Mathematical and Computer Science and Engineering; Social and Behavioral Sciences and Public Service; and Education and Professional Applied Sciences.

A media artist and leader of collaborative vision and social change, Diekman has more than 30 years of experience producing, directing and editing award-winning films and videos. She founded Video in the Community, engaging students, faculty and the community in completing more than 50 films and videos that serve non-profit organizations.

As a professional media artist dedicated to socially engaged films and videos, she has produced large-scale projects that serve the public. Amongst these are her current project, Run Dry, funded by the California Humanities and the CSU Water Resources and Policy Initiative grant. Run Dry is an eBook that depicts the stories of families living in the Central Valley without water and contextualizes them within themes of poverty, equity, migration and water rights.

“Kristine is an internationally known video and new media artist whose experimental videos, documentary films and new media installations are interview-based and give voice to populations and individuals whose life experiences might not otherwise be heard,” said President Karen Haynes. “Her works cover such crucial social issues as gang prevention, reproductive health and intergenerational communication. She clearly exemplifies the highest values of Cal State San Marcos and the CSU, and embodies what it means to be a faculty member committed to sustained excellence in teaching, research, student learning and community engagement.”

“This award is not just something that I have earned, but something that every student and every community member who has taken part in media projects has also earned,” added Diekman. “It is recognition of the work that we have done as a community at CSUSM, a reflection of the support that faculty and the staff have provided for so many years, and the importance of social engagement and inclusion at our university.”

The Wang Award was established in 1998 when then-CSU Trustee Stanley Wang gave $1 million to recognize remarkable contributions of faculty and administrators over 10 years. Trustee Emeritus Wang reinstated the award with a $300,000 gift to provide the $20,000 awards to each of the honorees annually for three years, beginning in 2015.

The exhibition is a culmination of student work for the course, Process of Art, taught by Professor Judit Hersko and Adjunct Faculty Member Tatiana Sizonenko, which encourages students to explore the elements, forms, functions and meaning of the visual and performing arts in their socio-cultural context. A range of media will be on display from painting to music and digital art.

What: Aesthetica, a multi-media exhibition by CSUSM student artists.

When: Thursday, May 14 at 5:30 p.m.

Where: CSUSM, Arts Building, 333 S. Twin Oaks Valley Rd., San Marcos

Directions and Parking: Directions can be found at www.csusm.edu/guide. On-campus parking is available with rates from $3 to $9 depending upon length of stay.