Boston Mayor Michelle Wu appoints city's first Black fire commissioner

Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald on Apr 16, 2026

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BOSTON — Mayor Michelle Wu has appointed Rodney Marshall, a 35-year veteran of the Boston Fire Department, as the city’s first Black fire commissioner.

Wu announced Thursday that she has appointed Marshall as the fire department’s 45th commissioner. He replaces Paul Burke, who retired this year, and will take over the leadership position later this month after he is sworn into his new role.

“As a distinguished and deeply respected 35-year veteran of the Boston Fire Department, Deputy Chief Rodney Marshall is exceptionally qualified to lead the brave men and women of Boston Fire who put their lives on the line to keep our communities safe,” Wu said in a statement.

“As a lifelong Bostonian, he knows our communities, has demonstrated his leadership on the job and has dedicated his career to serving and protecting our residents,” Wu added.

The mayor also mentioned that she is “deeply grateful for Commissioner Paul Burke’s strong and steady leadership over the past nearly four years, and knows that his legacy in the department and city will continue to have an impact on our neighborhoods.”

Marshall joined the Boston Fire Department in 1991. He is currently the department’s chief of operations for support services.

Upon joining the department, he was assigned to Engine 56, and rose through the ranks to become a fire lieutenant in 1998. That same year, he was awarded the commissioner’s unit citation for saving the lives of multiple residents during a six-alarm fire, the mayor’s office said.

Marshall was later promoted to fire captain in 2005, district fire chief in 2014, and deputy fire chief in 2022. He has been chief of operations since 2022.

His second commissioner’s unit citation came in 2013, for rescuing several people trapped in a bus with severe roof damage, the mayor’s office said.

Marshall, a Dorchester native and Boston College graduate, thanked the mayor “for the privilege of leading the department that has shaped my life and career.”

“As a proud son of Dorchester, I joined the Boston Fire Department because I wanted to give back to the communities where I grew up, and I’m committed to supporting the firefighters and staff who work every day to keep Boston’s neighborhoods safe,” Marshall said in a statement.

Marshall cited his efforts to design and oversee the launch of the fire department’s cadet program, which is aimed at helping city kids become firefighters, as one of his proudest career accomplishments, per the mayor’s office.

Wu’s office did not immediately provide salary information for Marshall’s new position. Burke was paid a base salary of $311,382 as fire commissioner last year, per city payroll records.

The mayor’s decision to appoint a Black fire commissioner came after pressure from city and state elected officials of color.

Boston City Councilor Brian Worrell sent a letter to Wu on Feb. 3 calling for her to “promote from the qualified Black and brown firefighters in leadership that are representative of our city’s diversity.”

“The Boston Fire Department’s 175-year history has not fully reflected the diversity of the communities it is sworn to serve,” Worrell wrote. “Over the past five years, the city has undertaken efforts to make the Boston Fire Department more equitable, through efforts such as the fire cadet program and the hybrid residency model, but leadership representation remains a critical missing piece.

“Our firehouses should reflect the full strength, talent and diversity of Boston, and that reflection must extend to the highest levels of leadership. Appointing Boston’s first Black fire commissioner would send a clear message to current and future firefighters that opportunity is real and leadership is within reach for everyone willing to serve,” Worrell wrote.

Signing onto Worrell’s letter were City Councilors Miniard Culpepper, Ruthzee Louijeune, Julia Mejia, Enrique Pepén, and Henry Santana; state Reps. Russell Holmes, Brandy Fluker Reid, Chynah Tyler, and Christoper Worrell; state Sen. Liz Miranda; and Suffolk Register of Probate Stephanie Everett.

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