[dropcap]F[/dropcap]atigue started to set in for Hays High senior Kate Mondragon as she labored to carry a 180-pound dummy past a set of orange cones.

Decked out in firefighter bunker gear, helmet and oxygen tank, Mondragon paused several times wanting to rest. But all around her, fellow students and instructors encouraged Mondragon to finish, even as her body didn’t want to.

Armed with an extra bit of adrenaline, Mondragon finished dragging the hefty, lifeless body across the way, which all...