When Jeremy Hansen was a student at Fox Valley Technical College in the early 1990s, he had big ambitions, including dreaming of one day becoming a fire chief. The dream became a reality on Monday when he was sworn in as the new chief of the Appleton Fire Department. Hansen is the 12th fire chief in the department's history. “I think back and I reflected greatly on this as I’ve gone through my career,” Hansen said. “Knowingly or unknowingly, I’ve prepared myself for that role, going out to the National Fire Academy and becoming an executive fire officer and finishing all the paper on the wall that gets you in the door." Hansen, 44, started his career at the Eau Claire Fire Department, where he worked for almost a decade in various roles, including firefighter, paramedic and acting lieutenant.