CHAPTER
NEWS & BUSINESS
Chapter Officers Elected and Installed
for 2007-2008
The Election
of Officers of the Virginia Chapter of APCO was held at the annual meeting in
Linda Goodridge of
New faces among the Virginia Chapter APCO officers are Denise Torelli (
Melinda
Bramley (Virginia
Beach ECC) was re-elected Treasurer and Jim Junkins
(Harrisonburg-Rockingham ECC) was re-elected as Executive Council Delegate
(At Large Member) for a two-year
term.
Bylaws
Changes Approved at Fall Meeting
The
Constitution and By-Laws were amended at the Fall
business meeting on Friday, October 19, 2007, in
SYNOPSIS OF CHANGES -
CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS
Resolution # 1
Intent: To clarify wording in Section 2, paragraph 2.1 of page
9 concerning the wording of election of the Chapter President, President Elect
and Immediate Past President.
Section 2 - POSITIONS TO BE FILLED
2.1 The
offices of President and President-Elect and Immediate Past President
shall be filled by annual advancement in rank. (i.e. the existing Vice
President advances to the office of President-Elect, the existing
President-Elect advances to the office of President, and the existing President
assumes the position of Immediate Past President)
Resolution
# 2
Intent:
The intent of this resolution is
to update and add to Section 2, paragraphs 2.3 and 2.4 of page 9. These changes
will enlarge the Chapter Executive Council by adding 3 additional Chapter at
Large positions and will change the terms of office of the Secretary and
Treasurer to two year terms of office. This resolution would also stagger the
terms of these offices.
2.2 The Vice President shall
be elected annually for a one-year term.
2.3 The APCO
International Executive Council Delegate, Treasurer and two (2) of the four (4)
Chapter Members-At-Large shall be elected
biannually for a two-year term. Terms for these offices will expire in even
number years.
2.4 The Secretary
and two (2) of the four (4) Chapter Members-At-Large shall be elected
biannually for a two-year term. Terms for these offices will expire in odd
number years.
Resolution
# 3
Intent:
To clarify the wording in Section 3,
paragraph 1, page 9 addressing how offices are nominated and filled.
All
elective positions in this Chapter shall be elected from nominations submitted
by the nominating committee in accordance with By-Laws Article V, Section 2.3, and
from nominations from the floor. Such balloting shall be done at the last
scheduled business session of the fall meeting in each calendar year.
Resolution # 4
Intent: To update and better explain how positions are filled
by adding new sections 3.1 and 3.2 under Section 3, page 9 of the Constitution
and By-Laws.
3.1 When the nomination
process produces two or more candidates for an elective position, then that
position shall be elected by ballot.
3.2 When the
nomination process produces only one candidate for an elective position, then
the Nominations Committee Chair shall take a voice vote at the close of the
nomination process to elect that individual to the position to which they were
nominated.
Resolution # 5
Intent: To update and better explain Section 4, page 9
concerning when newly elected officers will officially take office within the
Chapter.
Section 4 - DATE FOR
TAKING OFFICE
Candidates
elected at the fall meeting shall automatically take office at the end of the business
meeting held during the Fall of each calendar year, in which the term of office
expires.
Resolution # 6
Intent: To upgrade and better explain Section 2, Paragraph 1,
under Standing Committees on page 11 to include the new chapter officer
positions.
2.1
EXECUTIVE COUNCIL
The
Chapter President shall be the Chair of this Council, and its members shall
consist of the Board of Officers, the Immediate Past President, the four (4) Chapter
Members-At-Large and the APCO International Executive
Council Delegate. A President who resigns during his/her term of
office shall not be eligible to serve as the immediate Past President on the
Executive Council; membership on the Council shall revert to the last Past
President having not resigned.
Resolution # 7
Intent: To update Section 2.3, Paragraph 4 on Page 12 under
Nominating Committee to be consistent with the changes of adding the three (3)
additional Chapter at Large positions to the Chapter
Executive Council.
The
committee chair shall report to the President, on a timely basis, and the
Secretary shall forward to the chapter membership a listing of the candidates
for office at least 30 days prior to the fall meeting. A short biography or
resume for each candidate shall be made available to the membership. This
committee shall bring the ballot to the fall meeting quorum, in the form of
candidates for the offices of Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer, and when
applicable, two (2) of
the four (4) Chapter Members-At-Large
or the APCO International Executive Council Delegate.
Resolution # 8
Intent: To update Section 6, page 15 to require an annual
audit of the financial records and to present the complete results of the audit
to the Chapter Membership
Section 6 – AUDITING OF
CHAPTER FINANCIAL RECORDS
An annual
audit of the Chapter’s financial records shall be performed by an independent
professional accountant or accounting firm. The Executive Council shall retain
the services of a qualified accountant or accounting firm, and the Chapter
shall bear the costs associated with this provision. The results of the annual audit shall be
presented to the Chapter membership.
A full copy of the Constitution and Bylaws is
available on the Constitution
and Bylaws webpage.
Hobgood Named 2007 APCO Information Technologist of
the Year
The
Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International
announced the 2007 Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) Award winners earlier
this year. The awards were presented at the Opening General Session of the APCO
International 73rd Annual Conference and Exposition in
The PSAP
Awards are the five annual awards presented by APCO International to public
safety communications personnel who have demonstrated the highest levels of
personal and professional conduct and performance in the line of duty. The five
awards are Telecommunicator of the Year, Information Technologist of the Year,
Radio Frequency Technologist of the Year, Line Supervisor of the Year, and
Communications Center Director of the Year and the 2007 winners are as follows:
- Telecommunicator of
the Year - Colleen Townsend, dispatcher, Genesee County (MI) Central
Dispatch
- Information Technologist of the Year - Linwood
W. "Bill" Hobgood, Jr., systems development leader, Public
Safety Team, City of Richmond, VA Department of Information Technology
- Radio Frequency
Technologist of the Year - Bruce Dennis, wireless system engineer, City
and County of Denver (CO), Technology Services/Electronic Engineering
Bureau
- Line Supervisor of the
Year - Christina Giacomelli, dispatch supervisor, Alameda County (CA)
"APCO
International congratulates the 2007 PSAP Award winners," APCO
International President Wanda McCarley said. "The work they have done in
their respective agencies are great examples of activities deserving of this
great honor and their entire departments should be proud their awards."
The Virginia Chapter joins in
congratulating Bill Hobgood of
Virginia Commonwealth
University
The Association of
Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International announced the
The CALLS Award is made
each year to a corporation whose service to their employer and the community
they serve over the current year has been deserving of recognition.
"The APCO
International Board of Officers would like to express their most sincere
congratulations to the
Junkins
Recognized for Outstanding Contributions to SIEC
Jim Junkins, Director of the
Virginia’s
Communications Interoperability Baseline Survey
An
important initiative in the
As
an APCO member and/or organizational leader, you may be receiving an email from
the Commonwealth Interoperability Coordinator’s Office (CICO) with a URL link
to the baseline survey, a log-in, a personalized password and detailed directions. If you do not receive the survey via email,
but believe you are a stakeholder who should contribute to it, you may request
the survey through the Interoperability in
The
success of the survey relies on the commitment of you and your peers! Since the baseline survey gathers information
from all aspects of communications interoperability it may take multiple
subject matter experts from within your agency, locality or region to complete
one survey submission. While the
computer based survey tool is extremely user friendly, dedication from all of
The
Virginia Chapter of APCO thanks you in advance for your patience and dedication
in completing
Virginia Chapter of NENA Launches Website
The Virginia
Chapter of NENA launched its new website on March 20, and according to Vice President
Rodney Gentry, its chocked full of wholesome NENA goodness! On the website, you will find BIO's of the
current VENA Board, links to other websites from the 911 industry, training and
educational opportunities, and the latest news!
Any suggestions, please let Rodney know at rlgentry@co.
Now - here is the
site - please bookmark it and save it among your "favorites"!
E911 Institute Awards Gala
Recognizes Outstanding Virginia
Agency
On
March 13, 2007, the E9-1-1 Institute and the National Emergency
Number Association (NENA) will hosted the 4th
Annual “Honors Awards" Gala. The Gala
paid tribute to some of the heroes and leaders this past year, including the Fairfax County Public Safety Communications
Division, which was
recognized at the annual Awards Gala with the “Call Taker/Dispatcher of
the Year Award”.
APCO International Applauds Virginia PBX/MLTS Legislation Passage
February 23, 2007,
"This legislation will go a long way in further protecting our citizens,
especially those in assisted living facilities, nursing homes, on college
campuses, visiting in vacation resorts, and all other facilities where
multi-line telephone systems are utilized," said Bill Agee, president of
the Virginia Chapter of APCO.
PBX/MLTS are characterized by multiple extensions operating from a single
switchboard. Most schools, businesses, and hotels operate on
PBX/MLTS. Currently, when a call is made from one of the extensions to
9-1-1 the location information provided is that of the switchboard and not the
extension, which can be found on a different floor of a building and even sometimes
in a different building.
This legislation came just weeks after APCO International re-released its
PBX/MLTS Whitepaper expressing a need for authoritative action on the part of
public safety leaders in respect to this issue. PBX/MLTS is an
issue which has been overshadowed by other technologies, but the problems
associated with this technology have not been fully addressed.
The paper outlines the current problems with MLTS and PBX, which include a lack
of consumer awareness that these systems can delay emergency response and the
perception that there is no incentive to correct the problem. In
addition, the paper urges national and state policy makers to move towards
regulation regarding 9-1-1 location information from MLTS and PBX.
Please visit http://www.apcointl.com/government/positions/issuepapers/Multi-LineTelephoneSystems.pdf
to read the whitepaper.
Visit House
Bill 1603 for information on the
A special thanks to our Virginia Chapter of APCO PBX
Committee Co-Chairs, Sam Keys and Tom Hanson, and to our Legislative
Representative Terry Hall for three years of their hard work and tenacious
dedication in the passing of the Virginia PBX/MLTS Legislation. These members have represented the Chapter by
attending endless meetings and spending countless hours with Delegate Rapp for
a successful conclusion.
The efforts of these gentlemen and members of the
Virginia Chapter of APCO have once again put us in the lead, not only in
Virginia Chapter Endorses Common Language Protocols
February 23, 2007
Dear Virginia APCO Members:
The Virginia Chapter of the Association of
Public-Safety Communications Officials (VA APCO) recognizes the need for clear,
concise and consistent communications between all
For this reason, the Executive Board of VA APCO has
unanimously voted to endorse the Virginia Common Language protocols and
encourages the use of the protocols for all communications. The Executive
Board of VA APCO encourages you to affect usage of the Virginia Common Language
Protocols in your employment, locality or business so as to promulgate the
protocol's usage throughout the Commonwealth.
Sincerely,
Bill Agee, President
Virginia Chapter of APCO
View or Download Endorsement Letter
To Download, Right Click and “Save
File/Target As”
Membership Committee
Bernard J. “Buster” Brown, Chair of the Chapter’s
Membership Committee, invites interested members to be part of the Virginia
Chapter Membership Committee. Contact Buster via email bbrown@gcvasheriff.us
or 434-985-2222 Ext 501. Thanks for your
help.
Greene County
Greene County Sheriff’s Office (911 Communication Center)
went online with the APCO EMD program effective January 1, 2007. During the month of December, staff took the
CPR and the EMD Dispatcher course to prepare for implementation of APCO EMD.
Congratulations to the staff of
Fall Conference Held in Lynchburg
The 2006 APCO/NENA Fall
Conference, held November 15-17 at the Holiday Inn Express Hotel in
Officers Elected and Installed for 2006-2007
Officers
for 2006-2007 are Bill Agee, President; Linda Goodridge, President-Elect; Carol
Adams, Vice President; Ken Crumpler, Secretary; and Melinda Bramley,
Treasurer. Immediate Past President
Terry Hall was elected to represent the Chapter on the APCO International
Executive Council for 2006-2008, and Jim Junkins will serve the second year of
his term as the at-large delegate to the Chapter Executive Council for
2005-2007.
President Bill Agee (
President-Elect Linda Goodridge (
Vice
President Carol
Adams (
Secretary Kenneth
Crumpler (Virginia Office of
Treasurer Melinda
Bramley (
Int’l
Executive Council Terry
Hall (
At-large
Delegate Jim Junkins (Harrisonburg-Rockingham ECC)
Immediate
Past President Terry Hall (York
County Fire & Life Safety)
Bramley and Hanson Named Chapter Life Members
Melinda Bramley (Virginia
Beach) and Tom
Hanson (UVA-Charlottesville-Albemarle) were awarded Chapter Life Membership
at the Fall 2006 meeting of the Virginia Chapter.
Bramley began her career
with the Virginia Beach 911 Emergency Communications Division in 1969. She began her career as an offense clerk and
has served as dispatcher, operations supervisor, administrative supervisor and
communications specialist. Melinda is
currently the Training and Retention Specialist for the division and is
responsible for the
planning, administration, and oversight of the Virginia Beach 911 Emergency
Communications Division’s training function.
Her responsibilities also include creating activities and programs to
enhance the selection, hiring and retention of Emergency Communications
Division Employees. Melinda possesses an
extensive knowledge of the entire operation of the Virginia Beach
Communications Division. Melinda holds
an Associates Degree in Police Science and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Human
Resource Administration. She is also an
Emergency Medical Dispatch Instructor and a Department of Criminal Justices
General Instructor. Melinda represents
her department/division in a positive manner in both APCO and Region 42. Melinda has been a member of APCO
(Association of Public Safety Communications Officials Inc.) since 1982, and
has served on the Executive Board since 1984.
Melinda has served as Virginia APCO President, Virginia APCO Secretary
and is currently the Virginia State APCO Treasurer. She was recently awarded a Life Membership
in the Virginia Chapter of APCO. Melinda has been a member and served as
Secretary of the Region 42 Committee since its creation in 1988. Melinda is also an active member of NENA.
Hanson is Executive Director of the
Charlottesville/UVA/Albemarle Emergency Communications Center. He joined APCO in 1992. He served as the Chapter’s Delegate to APCO
International Executive Council from 2002 until 2006, and has been active on
various Chapter and International committees.
The Chapter extends its congratulations to both Melinda and Tom
and thanks them for their dedication and support of APCO.
Hall Named Communications Center Director of the Year
June 28,
2006, Washington, DC - The Association of Public-Safety Communications
Officials (APCO) International today announced the 2006 Public Safety Answering
Point (PSAP) Award winners. The awards will be presented at the Opening General
Session of the APCO International 72nd Annual Conference and Exposition in
Orlando, Fla. on August 7.
The PSAP Awards are the four annual awards presented by APCO International to public safety communications personnel who have demonstrated the highest levels of personal and professional conduct and performance in the line of duty. The four awards are Telecommunicator of the Year, Technician of the Year, Line Supervisor of the Year, and Communications Center Director of the Year and the 2006 winners are as follows:
·
Telecommunicator
of the Year - Jim Acosta, regional fire communications operator, Downey Fire
Department, Downey, Calif.
·
Technician
of the Year - Gerald Adam Cooper, CAD/GIS system manager, Covington-Newton
County 9-1-1 Communications, Covington, Ga.
·
Line
Supervisor of the Year - Susan Hall, shift manager, Stanislaus Regional 9-1-1,
Modesto, Calif.
·
Communications Center
Director of the Year - D. Terry Hall, emergency communications manager, York
County Department of Fire and Life Safety, Yorktown, Va.
"APCO
International congratulates the 2006 PSAP Award winners," APCO
International President Wanda McCarley said. "the work they have done in
their respective agencies are great examples of activities deserving of this
great honor and their entire departments should be proud their awards."
The APCO International 72nd Annual Conference and Exposition will be held August 6-10 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla.
Congratulations to
Noel Armstrong
of the Virginia State Police
Commonwealth of Virginia APCO
Frequency Coordinator
APCO International’s AFC Coordinator of the Year 2006
Wade Named Chapter Life Member
Ron Wade was honored with Chapter
Life Membership at the Fall 2005 meeting of the Virginia Chapter. Wade retired as Superintendent of Roanoke
City’s 9-1-1 Center in 2005. He has been
a member of APCO since 1988. He was elected
Vice President in Fall 2000, and served on the Chapter Executive Council from
then until Fall 2005. He served as
Chapter President during the 2002-2003 term.
He has served as a conference chair and co-chair for the Fall Conference
for a number of years, as well as serving on various other committees and as a
member of the State EMS Communications Committee.
Chapter Contributes to Sunshine
Fund
The
Virginia Chapter of APCO is contributing $1,200 to the APCO Sunshine Fund as a means
of providing financial assistance to APCO International members in
the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina. Information on APCO's
Sunshine Fund relief effort is contained in a letter from APCO President Greg
Ballentine below.
Chapter
President Scott Chandler said, “The Virginia Chapter recognizes the impact of
this disaster upon our fellow telecommunicators and public safety
communications staff and is proud to contribute to this worthy effort.
Additionally, we extend our appreciation to all those who continue to
support public safety communications efforts in the affected
areas. Our thoughts and prayers are extended to our family of public
safety communications professionals in their time of need.”
Additionally,
the Louisiana Chapters of APCO and NENA have made a separate appeal for relief
efforts to support needs in Louisiana. A copy of the letter from Don
Smith, Louisiana NENA Chapter President is below.
Agencies
and individuals may wish to consider donating to these or other charitable relief
efforts.
Should
you have any questions, please contact any member of the Virginia Chapter's
Executive Council.
Chapter History
Chapter
Historian Butch Johnstone has been researching the Chapter’s history. He has provided an Adobe file with an early Bulletin article, page 21, and the
oldest copy of Constitution and By-Laws that International can find (the first
20 pages). Actually, this represents the entire contents of
International's file on VA Chapter. The Bulletin article includes the
names of those instrumental in chapter formation (APCO President Paul Franklin,
Virginians: Marshall, Lee, Anderson, Crosen and 23 others), past membership in
the National Chapter, and "charter application to be filed at least 60
days before the 1960 Conference".
Chapter’s Constitution & Bylaws Amended and Adopted
The Chapter’s Constitution & Bylaws were amended and
adopted at the Fall meeting in Roanoke on October 8, 2004. The new bylaws appear on this website, along
with a summary of the changes approved.
Thanks to the Bylaws Committee for their excellent work and submission!
