It’s no secret that the field of emergency dispatch has been struggling with too many empty seats, which places a heavier burden for those still on the line.
A recent survey published by the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch® (IAED™) and the National Association of State 911 Administrators (NASNA) showed nearly one-third of the 774 surveyed 911 comm. centers in the United States reported stunning vacancy rates in 2022. Thirteen centers reported that 70% or more of positions were unfilled; 92 centers reported a vacancy rate between 50-69%; and 166 centers reported rates of 30% to 49%.1
This trend raises a lot of questions about why some emergency dispatchers have chosen to leave the field, but the biggest question is how to draw a new workforce that will continue providing the same quality of emergency services the public expects and trusts.
In search of a solution, some comm. centers have begun to reach outside the typical pool of applicants by teaming up with community programs to offer a fulfilling career path. In some cases, that includes candidates from the local high school.
IAED Instructor Program Coordinator Bonni Stockman has joined in these efforts to build a pipeline for recruitment, supporting earlier outreach.
“I’m trying to debunk the theory that high schoolers are too young to be emergency dispatchers,” Stockman said. Like any generation before them, new graduates bring different strengths including their comfort level with technology. They show a desire for stability and future growth potential, unlike the job-hopping of prior generations.
In budding Emergency Telecommunicator (ETC) courses, participants are given introductions to customer service, call management, structured calltaking, advanced technology (GPS, CAD), call routing, radio use, disaster readiness, civics, and legal aspects.
Comm. centers need only adjust their expectations to cater to those who have recently completed an ETC program. “You have to work with your workforce,” Stockman said. “You might ask yourself, ‘What do we have to change in our training to be beneficial for this group?’”
These cooperative certification and training programs provide an informed, hands-on experience for participants to determine if emergency dispatch is the right path for them. “ETC exposure generally sifts out those who are curious versus those who are service minded and truly dedicated to the career path, which leads to better retention,” Stockman said.
Instructor/Program Perspectives
Amarillo, Texas (USA)
School: School of Law & Public Service, AmTech Career Academy
Comm. Center: AmTech Emergency Communications Center (AECC)
Greg Cearley is an instructor at the School of Law & Public Service at AmTech Career Academy (Amarillo, ISD). Three years ago, he and the AmTech Emergency Communications Center (AECC) turned an ongoing conversation into a paved pathway for students to enter a unique ETC program through a mutual partnership.
The program began with only four students and a lot of lenience for both teachers and students finding their way in the first year of operation. Today the program has 15–20 students who show a common interest in contributing to the security of their community.
“We learned early on that our students are either driven toward careers in public safety or law enforcement,” Cearley said. His aim is to capture his students’ desire to learn more about their chosen fields and direct them on their path.
Their students consist of high school seniors who are given classroom instruction and experience in a simulation lab designed around their location of Amarillo, Texas. Students also benefit from being mentored by those within the local comm. center, among other supports such as career fairs, workforce development, and job interview training.
“This preparation helps students feel at ease about their choices in real-world activities and careers,” Cearley said. “The ETC training helps students have a deeper understanding of how the varied realms of public service work together with the first, first responder at the helm for fire, police, and medical emergencies.”
The AmTech Career Academy ETC program recently launched one participant into a full-time hired position the summer after graduation. This student could one day become a mentor to the next set of seniors, training them in entry-level employment and aspects of the MPDS®, FPDS®, and PPDS®.
Westminster, South Carolina (USA)
School: Hamilton Career and Technology Center (HCTC)
Comm. Center: Oconee County Emergency Services
After 20 years as a law enforcement officer, Stephen Jenkins has made many contributions to the Oconee County public safety realm, including designing their new 911 center. Now he’s in his fourth year as an instructor for emergency communications, preparing the next generation of emergency dispatchers.
The high school hub—Hamilton Career and Technology Center (HCTC)—has had a law enforcement program for the last 20 years, but the emergency communications program is still a new opportunity with growing exposure.
“I wanted to find something I could offer students who were interested in law enforcement, so they didn’t have to bide their time until age 21,” Jenkins said. “Looking to the future, I realized I could create internships and potential job placement in the comm. center.”
With the help of the head of the Prisma Health Oconee Memorial Hospital and the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office, Jenkins created a semester-long program based on the ETC course, breaking the curriculum into smaller lesson plans.
The internship emergency communications program is reserved for 8–12 handpicked high school seniors. In addition to class time, participants are required to complete 40 hours of observation (done twice weekly) at the 911 center, fire department, hospital, police department, university security, etc.
Community support has been the key to the program’s success. “If I need a patrol car for training, I’ve got one sitting outside my classroom,” Jenkins said.
Grant money funded the purchase of a classroom 911 communications simulator with localized GPS, CAD, call data, warrant and driver’s license data, ten-key system, and headset equipment. “Having a realistic approach gives students more confidence to hit the ground running,” he said.
The emergency communications program is designed to stretch the students and give them exposure to different aspects of public safety. Though some personalities struggle with the stress and emotion of public safety, Jenkins says others just need a little more time to mature.
“I had one student say, ‘I’m not ready for this field,’ thinking I’d be disappointed,” he said. “But I was so proud of her to recognize that. If she becomes ready down the road, we’ll welcome her back in a heartbeat.”
Jenkins’ class/internship has also been an unexpectedly great fit for students who love being part of public safety but may not qualify to become a police officer due to disabilities. These students’ involvement is another fulfilling aspect of investing in each student personally.
For Jenkins, the classroom connections have been met with lasting rewards. “I’ve discovered instructing is all about relationships,” he said. “I took my class up to tour the 911 center, and I had one of my former students right there, just loving that environment. That’s a proud moment.”
Jenkins hopes his students will use their emergency dispatch knowledge, but he’s seen them take so many valuable paths, including pursuing athletic scholarships and law school. “In the end, I just want each student to feel like they are better prepared to take on challenges in life beyond high school,” he said.
Henrico, Virginia (USA)
School: Community College Workforce Alliance (CCWA)
Comm. Center: Henrico Department of Emergency Communications
Formerly under the police department, the Henrico Department of Emergency Communications became its own agency in July 2023, handling about 500,000 to 525,000 emergency and nonemergency calls per year.
In recent years, the comm. center has made great strides with vetting hiring processes, improving training plans, and slowly increasing their rate of retaining employees, according to Rebekah Taylor, Assistant Director of Support Services.
The best method to bolster staffing came together in 2019, when the comm. center partnered with the Community College Workforce Alliance (CCWA) to create a mutually beneficial paid internship program that Taylor describes as “a great partnership with personal investment.”
ETC Instructor and Internship Coordinator Devona Hill leads the program, providing participants with a combination of classroom instruction and engagement with the community to help them experience the reality of the field.
The program is advertised through recruiters, speaking events, and webinars, each encouraging those interested to go through the application process. Currently the program welcomes 7–14 participants at a time with potential for more growth (up to 20) as classroom space and technological resources allow. Each year, the program grows along with hopes that nearby counties may eventually adopt a similar structure.
“Our students range from 18 years old to participants in their 60s,” Hill said. “I switch up the material based off getting to know all the students.” Where some learners do well with a “read, study, and apply” approach, others benefit more from their 40 hours of observation in the comm. center.
“It’s one thing to read about a console, and it’s another thing to go to the live center and see their six monitors, three mouses, and so many keyboards,” Hill said.
Hill personally works with interns to describe the information displayed on each monitor, including where to look for information as it populates during a live call and how each layer works together for police, fire, and medical.
“Even though we are talking to the community during these training calls, things are happening behind the scenes,” Hill said. “And that’s where the real magic happens.”
Though the goal is to hire ETC interns directly into the comm. center, some end up in related fire and police departments, which is still a benefit to the county.
Student Perspectives
Dane County, Wisconsin (USA)
School: McFarland High School
Comm. Center: Dane County Public Safety Communications
Levi Earle recently gained the title of Public Safety Communicator at Dane County Public Safety Communications after his completion of the ETC program suggested by his high school counselor.
The night course was held for one hour a week at the McFarland Municipal Center, with six students from various high schools participating. With the completion of the six-month course, Earle received an ETC certification that laid the groundwork for the skills he uses daily in his role as an Emergency Dispatcher, though that wasn’t always his plan.
“I planned to pursue becoming an ER nurse,” Earle said. “I expected ETC would expose me to the emergency field and would teach me communication skills for a fast-paced environment, dealing with people with heightened emotions.”
At the end of the course, Earle and his fellow students worked with Dane County Public Safety Communications to set up mock interviews. The experience of demonstrating all he had learned gave Earle the confidence to go for a real position. “In the end, I fell in love with dispatch,” he said.
Coming from a high school background has been a benefit to Earle, as he was already accustomed to studying and absorbing information quickly. As expected, his transition into an Emergency Dispatcher role felt seamless with about a month of in-class training focused on specific policies and procedures for Dane County.
As part of the ETC program, Earle and his classmates had the opportunity to sit and observe Emergency Dispatchers in the comm center. “When I sat along, I was sitting with my future co-workers,” Earle said. “I’m not sure if they remember me coming, but I remember them.”
Since becoming part of the team, Earle has discovered real benefits to his new role: a stable position with a competitive salary, night shifts that grant freedom during regular workdays, involvement in the community, appreciation for new skill sets, and potential for future growth.
“One of my favorite parts of the job is navigating issues with which I have less experience,” Earle said. “Though it can sometimes be stressful, I’ve learned to turn to my co-workers and supervisors to gain advice and help callers with confidence.”
While he’s still mastering caller control, he feels experience is the best teacher. “The more time you have, the more exposure you have, the better you will do at it,” he said.
One of Earle’s original classmates now sits beside him in the comm. center. While some from Earle’s class are still finishing their high school education, one is pursuing firefighting and another is participating in a university program.
Denver, Colorado (USA)
Schools: CEC Early College of Denver, Community College of Denver
High school student Tasmin Zafar-Ahmad is one of 11 students who will be the first to complete the Denver Public Schools District emergency dispatch training concurrent enrollment program including classroom instruction, a training simulation system, and job shadowing.
After completing the four-month program, students can take the certification exam and combine it with a one-semester course at the Community College of Denver to become certified Emergency Dispatchers.
Originally curious about the way emergency dispatchers are portrayed in entertainment, Zafar-Ahmad received instruction from professionals in the field, worked through ETC lesson plans, and completed a day of job shadowing to experience the reality of emergency dispatch behind the scenes.
For Zafar-Ahmad, it feels too much of a leap to go from taking notes to taking calls. Though she has fast typing, multitasking, and active listening skills that are a benefit to the emergency dispatch role, her exposure to the swift intensity of the comm. center was intimidating.
“This program provided me with the chance to explore and potentially pursue a new career path,” Zafar-Ahmad said. “However, the pressure seems overwhelming, and I don't feel equipped to handle such high-stakes situations at the moment.”
Understanding that errors in the live operations of the comm. center could pose life-threatening risks has helped Zafar-Ahmad evaluate whether she could perform under such crucial pressure.
The ETC program led Zafar-Ahmad to feel more confident in choosing a different path for herself, while others in her cohort have found a fulfilling career ahead. In both cases, the experience has helped students gain understanding and appreciation for the role of emergency dispatch in public safety and the community.
Conclusion
Regardless of whether students branch off into law enforcement, military communication, or other educational pursuits, Stockman aims to follow ETC program participants through their training, future roles, and development in their careers.
While comm. centers are eager to invite participants to fill open positions, Stockman says it’s a win regardless. “Even if participants choose a different career, they will become better citizens, more prepared to call 911, more invested in their communities, and more respectful of the field of emergency dispatch,” she said.
Source:
- “MORE THAN HALF OF U.S. 911 CENTERS ARE FACING THEIR OWN EMERGENCY.” International Academies of Emergency Dispatch. 2023; Feb. 27. https://www.emergencydispatch.org/in-the-news/press-releases/64632133-7f9f-4d77-8013-d59c445fdb88 (accessed March 22, 2024).
