April Draper, Accreditation Program Coordinator for the Covington Fire Department, is a native of Newton County who began her career with the City of Covington in September 2003. She started in the Customer Service Department at City Hall before transitioning to the Fire Department in 2007 as the Administrative Specialist. In 2011, she was promoted to her current role, where she oversees the department’s Accreditation Process.

 

April is a Certified Level 1 Peer Assessor through the Center for Public Safety Excellence and has traveled across the United States serving on peer assessment teams for departments seeking accreditation. She also serves as the Coordinator for the Georgia Association for Fire Accreditation and Professional Credentialing.

 

In her role, April leads the department’s Community Risk Reduction (CRR) efforts and is an active member of the Vision 20/20 Steering Committee, a national organization committed to advancing CRR initiatives. To further support her work in public safety education, she holds a Fire & Life Safety Educator Certification from the Georgia Public Safety Training Center and is currently pursuing a degree in Business Management through Troy University.

 

In 2024, following a recommendation of deferral from a peer assessment team, April played a key role in guiding the department’s efforts to strengthen its risk assessment methodology and enhance data collection and analysis. These improvements led to a successful second peer assessment in late 2024, during which the department met or exceeded all previously deferred items and received a recommendation for re-accreditation. The department was reaccredited by the Commission in the spring of 2025.

 

Outside of her professional responsibilities, April enjoys singing in her church’s praise band and is an active member of a local ladies’ Bible study group. She and her husband of 27 years, Jim, live in Covington and have two adult children, a daughter and a son.