APRIL 2014

17th Annual Telecommunicators Appreciation Celebration and Outstanding Performance Awards

The Kansas City Regional 9-1-1 system honored emergency communications personnel at the 17th annual Telecommunicators Appreciation Celebration on Friday, April 18, at the Overland Park Marriott.

To view photos of this year's celebration, please click here.

Eight individuals received Outstanding Performance Awards at the event for their demonstrated valor and commitment to the field of public safety communications:

• Everyday Hero: Tonya Hagedorn, Lenexa Police Department
• Outstanding Individual Performance in a Critical Incident: Master Deputy Jeff Lang, Johnson County Sheriff's Office
• Outstanding Team Performance in a Critical Incident: Kim Harris, Doug Boucher and Jamila Crawford, Lee’s Summit Fire Department
• Outstanding Supervisory Performance: Candy Gram, Riverside Police Department
• Outstanding Training Performance: Master Deputy Brad Webb,  Johnson County Sheriff's Office
• Lifetime Achievement Award: Lt. Bill Walker, Johnson County Sheriff's Office

"It's important that we recognize individuals who give so much to serve this community," said Platte County Sheriff Mark Owen. "Each and every day, dispatchers and telecommunicators in this region give an outstanding performance, because they know that citizens are depending on them." Sheriff Owen led the roll call during the celebration and serves as co-chair of MARC's public safety communications board.

The celebration was held the Friday of National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week — a time to honor the unsung heroes who staff the nation's 9-1-1 centers and other emergency dispatch locations. It was a fun-filled evening with dining, dancing and music. Congratulations to this year's award recipients!

SMS text to 9-1-1 solution available later this year

In December 2012 the four major wireless carriers (AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon), with the encouragement of NENA and APCO, agreed to provide nationwide, SMS text to 9-1-1 starting in May 2014. PSAPs are required to submit a formal request to each wireless carrier for implementation of SMS text to 9-1-1 but the MARC Public Safety Communications Program will submit requests on behalf of the regional PSAPs. MARC will work with service providers to develop a schedule for implementation.

This option is a great opportunity to provide a new service with distinct benefits to residents and visitors in the Kansas City metro. Individuals that will benefit most from this service are the deaf and hard of hearing community, and individuals that could be put in greater danger by calling 9-1-1, such as victims of domestic violence. As of 2010 the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimated that 17 percent (36 million) of American adults experience hearing loss. Also, with the Kansas School for the Deaf located in the Kansas City metro it is important that local dispatchers are trained to address this community's needs.

This is an interim solution until Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1) can be fully implemented nationwide. SMS text to 9-1-1 is the best solution for the region because the existing equipment can receive texts through TTY with no costs and the training required is minimal compared to other solutions. MARC will provide trainings on SMS text to 9-1-1 as this project progresses.

After more than 40 years of service, Capt. Jess McLendon retires

Capt. Jess McLendon started his career as a communications officer for Riverside Police Department in 1969. Capt. McLendon's career grew and was memorable — marked by professional, personal and academic excellence.

McLendon spent the next two years working for two agencies. He served as a corporal for Platte Woods Police Department and as a patrolman for Lake Waukomis Police Department. Though these early experiences taught McLendon the basics, it was his 39 years with North Kansas City Police Department where he truly rose through the ranks. McLendon started off as a patrolman for North Kansas City and earned the titles of major and assistant chief of police by 2011.

For McLendon public service and law enforcement have always been a life-long aspiration. "Ever since I was five or six years old I wanted to be a police officer," said McLendon.

Between 2011 and 2013 McLendon served as the captain and commander of the support services division for the Gladstone Police Department. In this capacity he developed the city's security and surveillance systems and worked on the consolidated dispatch systems for Clay County.

While McLendon enjoyed the work, it was always about people and teamwork. "The whole career was just really enjoyable. I got to meet and work with a lot of really good people."

McLendon also served as the co-chair for MARC's regional interoperability communications committee. He currently teaches criminal justice and public administration courses at the Hauptmann School of Public Affairs at Park University, where he has served as an adjunct faculty member since 1988.

Patti Clark retires from Blue Springs Police Department

Dispatch Supervisor Patti Clark retired after more than 35 years in public safety communications. She started her career in Colorado and worked a few years in California, but established herself working for the Blue Springs Police Department for 25 years.

Clark's career grew along with the community of Blue Springs. "There were only two of us when I first got there," said Clark. "We did all of the dispatching for police, fire and EMS."

Clark was always willing to take on new responsibilities and didn't let the stress of the job get to her. During the early days of the computer-aided dispatch system she collected and loaded all of the community information into the computers.

"It took me ten years and when we first started there was no map." Clark recalled driving up and down the streets of Blue Springs to gather the data. "I know the streets of Blue Springs pretty well."

As the community grew there was increased need for more dispatchers, and with her years of experience Clark was made dispatch supervisor in 1990. She was always grateful for how her team handled stress, especially during citizens' most dire circumstances, such as attempted suicides and bank robberies.

Clark said she retired at the right time, because she left knowing that her staff are well trained and can carry on without her.

Error report submission contest

It's that time of year again — time for the annual PSAP error report contest! This contest will run through the month of June and, similar to last year, we will announce two winners. One winner will be based on the PSAP with the highest number of valid error reports, divided by the submitting PSAP's call volume. The second contest winner will be based on the total valid PSAP error reports for the month of June.

Contest Rules:

• Contest runs from June 1 through June 30.
• You can only submit errors identified during the course of handling a 9-1-1 call.
• You can enter all database or map errors using Info Manager on
  a 9-1-1 workstation, or follow your agency's procedure for
  submitting errors.

This contest is more than a friendly competition, it is also an opportunity to help clean up the region's 9-1-1 database and map data — which could make your job easier when handling a call and could potentially help your agency provide faster response times to the citizens in your communities. Winners will be announced in early July.

PSAPs upgrade to Next Generation 9-1-1 compatible software

The communications division of Miami County Sheriff's Office, Raymore Police Department, Prairie Village Police Department and Leawood Police Department are the latest successful upgrades to Cassidian's Vesta call-taking platform — formerly known as Patriot or Sentinel. Upgrading these systems is part of the multi-year migration to faster equipment and a platform capable of running a Next Generation 9-1-1 system.

On April 23, Shawnee Police Department's workstations were upgraded to the Vesta software. In May the Pleasant Hill Police Department, Belton Police Department and Cass County Sheriff's Office will be upgraded to the new platform. Johnson County Sheriff's Office and the Johnson County Emergency Communications Center will also be upgraded in June of this year.

Prior to being upgraded to the Vesta platform, a MARC public safety communications technician will upload training videos to your computer. When these videos are available, please click on the shortcut on your desktop. These videos will help you become more acquainted with the new platform.

Maintenance Services

If your issue requires immediate attention please call 816/421-2911 any time day or night.

In non-emergency situations, you may email maintenance requests or questions to 911techs@marc.org or call 816/421-2911.

Remember, it is important to reboot your 9-1-1 workstations at least once each week, Monday through Friday, between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., when a MARC communications technician is available in case you experience any problems. This will automatically update the GeoLynx map data on your workstation.

Upcoming Training Opportunities

May 15: 9-1-1 Technology

May 20: Advanced Fire Communications

May 29: 9-1-1 HazMat

June 10: 9-1-1 Crisis Calls

June 11: Metropolitan Area Regional Radio System (MARRS) User Training

July 1: Winning with People in the PSAP

July 10: Personal Strengths and Leadership Styles

July 15: 9-1-1 Equipment Training

July 17: TTY Training

July 22: Disaster Communications

See a complete list of upcoming
9-1-1 training opportunities and GTI courses included in the 9-1-1 training consortium membership.

Special Events and Trainings

May 14: Tactical Interoperable Communications (TIC) Plan Orientation

May 22: Professional Development Series — Preparing for Large-Scale Operations: A Case Study of Shooting Incidents

PSAP Managers Forum

The PSAP Managers Forum is an excellent resource for managers and supervisors to share and exchange ideas, concerns and suggestions.

Have a story you want to share?

Email Paul Lampe or call 816/701-8366.