Twenty-seven dispatchers from across Kentucky graduated from the Department of Criminal Justice Training’s Public Safety Dispatch Academy and are now ready to begin answering the call to aid both citizens and law enforcement officers of the Commonwealth.
“Your commitment to your community and commonwealth is honorable,” Gov. Andy Beshear said, in making the announcement. “You are the lifeline to those who are experiencing the roughest moments of their lives. Thank you for answering the call to serve and being a calm voice amid chaos.”
Dispatch basic training is mandatory for any sworn or civilian employee who will dispatch law enforcement officers by radio at a Criminal Justice Information Systems agency. Graduates of the academy have successfully completed a highly structured and comprehensive curriculum to satisfy mandated training requirements. Over four weeks, the graduates of Class 165 received 164 hours of academy instruction to satisfy these requirements. Major training areas included identifying the role and responsibilities of the dispatcher, correct phone and radio procedures, handling emergency and nonemergency calls for service, using emergency medical dispatch protocols and using the state and national criminal databases.
“Choosing to become a member of a time-honored profession is admirable,” said DOCJT Commissioner Mike Bosse. “It carries with it a commitment of honor and professionalism. I thank you for your commitment and wish you the best of luck in your careers.”
Class 165 graduates and their agencies are:
Jonathan Atwood, Bowling Green Police Department
Ashely Burdette, Frankfort Police Department
Delanie Campbell, Elizabethtown Police Department
Cameron Crawford, Meade County E-911
Emily Dillon, Lawerence County 911
Miranda Kathryn Dowell, Breckinridge County Sheriff’s Office
Carys Earlywine, Fleming County 911
Kaylynn Renee Jackson, Clay County 911
Kristen Jordan, Versailles Police Department
Halee Lanigan, Pulaski County 911
Laura Kathryn Ledford, Bell County 911
Austin Lilly, Warren County Sheriff’s Office
Hunter Mattingly, Hancock County 911
Nicholas Ryan Meeks, Paducah-McCracken County E-911
Ethan Pack, Paintsville/Johnson County E-911
Samuel Dean Pennington, Grayson County Dispatch
Taylor Richey, Bluegrass 911 Central Communications
Berri Simpson, Union County 911
Emarie Simpson, Pulaski County 911
Tonya Lynn Sizemore, Lee County 911
Aaron Slusher, Magoffin County 911
Shelby Smith, Owensboro-Daviess County Central Dispatch
Suzanne Wartmann, Northern Kentucky University Police Department
Rochelle Willis, Todd County Dispatch
Kayla Nicole Wingfield, Bowling Green Police Department
Amanda G. Woosley, Whitley County 911
Miranda Zunun, Owensboro-Daviess County Central Dispatch
Kentucky Department of Criminal Justice Training