BERRIEN COUNTY DISPATCHERS TRAIN TEENS IN NEW CTE JOB SHADOW PROGRAM

By DEBRA HAIGHT
BCR Correspondent
ST. JOSEPH – Berrien County 9-1-1 Dispatch is looking for a few good people to fill staffing shortages and they’re getting help from two different sources to do just that. 9-1-1 Director Caitlin Sampsell noted that staffing has been a concern for “quite some time,” both in Berrien County and nationwide.
She said she saw an opportunity when one of the department’s furniture vendors, Kybix, had a contest for a free recruitment video. She entered the contest and learned later that Berrien County was selected to get a free video.
The video, part of which she showed during the meeting, featured interviews with three dispatchers, Berrien County Sheriff Chuck Heit, and Buchanan Police Chief Harvey Burnett, as well as Sampsell giving a tour of the department’s facilities.
“Our 9-1-1 team plays a vital role in helping us respond to calls,” Burnett said in the video. “It’s a very rewarding job but also very demanding. They make sure we get to incidents timely and also have the information we need to respond.”
Sampsell said dispatchers play two important roles: 1) to make sure the public gets the help they need in emergencies and 2) to make sure first responders have the information they need to answer calls and also to get home safely. “Come join our team and make Berrien County a safer place to be,” she said in the video.
The video is expected to be shared on social media sites as part of the department’s effort to recruit new people. She told commissioners that there are currently five openings with one person going through training right now.  She said dispatchers receive a total of nine months training.
When fully staffed, the dispatch center has 34 dispatchers, with five to 10 people working per shift and handling calls from 50 different police, fire, and emergency services agencies in the county.
Sampsell said the 9-1-1 Center is also partnering with the Berrien Springs Public Schools’ Career Technical Education program in a pilot program to include dispatching as part of their law enforcement classes. That program and other career technical education programs are open to students from throughout the county.
She said the pilot program offers high school juniors and seniors the chance to learn about dispatching as a career. Students will be able to “job shadow” actual dispatchers as well as practice on simulators, all of which will go to satisfying the state and national requirements to get basic 9-1-1 dispatch certification.
Sampsell noted that skills students are learning are “life skills” that can help them in a variety of careers. “The cool thing is that 9-1-1 is everywhere and students can take these skills wherever they go,” she said. The seniors learn additional mapping and typing skills. Sampsell noted she hopes the program graduates will apply to work for dispatch.
“I know there’s a lot of excitement with the CTE program,” County Commissioner Teri Freehling said. “I’ve sat in on some of the conversations with Rich Albers who is heading the program. It’s a great way to utilize resources and talents and make students aware of this career track for the future.”
Last week’s meeting also featured formal approval of the application for $4 million federal funds needed to construct a connecting trail from the McCoy’s Creek Trail in Buchanan to the Indiana-Michigan River Valley Trail as it goes north from Niles.