Announcements

Deadline is coming up to express interest in volunteering to assist in the development of APCO American National Standards. In particular we need producers of public safety communications equipment, products, processes, systems and services. You do not need to be an expert or an APCO member to participate. Deadline is December 3, 2021.

Please anticipate a brief downtime between 11PM and 3AM ET, Friday, November 19, while infrastructure maintenance is performed on PSConnect. We apologize for the disruption and appreciate your patience.

Cybersecurity Fundamentals for the ECC is a one-day course in the APCO Virtual Classroom. Training will include the anatomy of a cyberattack, signs of an ongoing cyberattack and mitigation techniques. Worth 8 CDEs. Register now for an upcoming 2022 class: January 11 or February  9.

Nov. 8 | 1 p.m. ET
Every Call, Every Time: Why Redundancy and Resiliency Are Ever More Critical for Safer, Smarter Cities
Will your systems be there when you really need them? What can you do to help make sure these essential systems are effective? How can you overcome the challenges of today and tomorrow by deploying advanced software solutions? Why is it worth the investment? These are questions everyone in public safety must be able to answer today and tomorrow and what we will discuss in this timely and informative webinar.

Watch all sessions on demand, available now!

Watch all 17 sessions and discover new ways to harness the power of technology and accelerate your growth and development. With dedicated sessions for all professionals and agencies large and small-there is something for everyone.

Watch at your own pace and earn valuable CEU credits along the way. Register as an attendee now to gain access to the recordings.

If you haven't yet registered head over to the ETF website to check out the speaker line-up for this year's virtual event. You won't want to miss this dynamic meeting where members and industry leaders share their vision of the future of emergency communications.

Taking place virtually Nov. 2-4 the Tech Forum is only $25 for members and offers 12 CDEs.

Take 5 minutes to change the future of 9-1-1! We need your help to convince the U.S. Senate to fully fund NG9-1-1. 

October 20 | 1:00 p.m. ET
Free for members and worth 1 CDE
This webinar presents an overview of current state of PTT over LTE and MCPTT today as a complimentary technology to LMR along with approaches to meeting recording requirements today and in the future.

Sponsored by Eventide

We are excited to announce the launch of our new website! Be sure to visit apcointl.org and browse the new and improved site, and if you want to learn a little more about the redesign, please join us for one of our introduction webinars taking place August 31 and September 1.

We are excited to announce that the launch of our new website is next week! So be sure to visit apcointl.org next week and browse the new and improved site, and if you want to learn a little more about the redesign, please join us for one of our introduction webinars taking place August 31 and September 1.

Please anticipate a brief downtime between 11PM and 3AM ET while infrastructure maintenance is performed on PSConnect Friday, August 20. We apologize for the disruption and appreciate your patience.

October 20 | 1:00 p.m. ET
Free for members and worth one CDE

This webinar presents an overview of current state of PTT over LTE and MCPTT today as a complimentary technology to LMR along with approaches to meeting recording requirements today and in the future.

August 3 at 1 p.m. ET
Free to members and worth one CDE

In this webinar, NICE and RapidSOS will explain how to empower your 9-1-1 center to:

• Capture, store and correlate RapidSOS data with other 9-1-1 data sources for comprehensive incident reconstruction
• Better understand whether your telecommunicators are using RapidSOS data effectively to deliver life-saving services and intelligent response
• Leverage 9-1-1 performance dashboards for data-driven decision-making and continuous refinement and improvement of emergency response

In Person  |  August 31-September 1
Georgia Public Safety Training Center in Forsyth, Ga.

The course curriculum includes discussions on experiences and viewpoints to better understand how perceptions – both individual and institutional – can affect how employees interact with each other in the workplace. The course will also identify interventions to counter biases, microaggressions and other negative workplace behaviors. Best practices are also addressed to result in healthier and more inclusive organizations with fully engaged employees.

Deadline is June 28!

We're looking for volunteers to assist in the creation of an ANSI National Standard that will establish criteria for minimum operational support requirements for a remote work situation for public safety telecommunicators, administrative staff of an emergency communications center and 3-1-1 operators (where appropriate).

June 15 | 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. ET

As an ECC professional, you do much more than take 9-1-1 calls and dispatch first responders in the field. You collect and share vital information from an incident. You connect information provided by the public with the response activities happening in the field. And that information is coming at you from more places than ever, as your systems are upgraded to integrate new NG9-1-1 features. As the front-line responders, you play a pivotal role in helping all responders update their tactics to catch up with the technology.

In this webinar, you’ll learn about apps in the FirstNet App Catalog that can help make your critical connections more effective and efficient. You’ll hear how those apps go through a thorough evaluation and why they’re trusted.

Sponsored by FirsNet, Built with AT&T.

Ten public safety communications professionals recently earned the Certified Public-Safety Executive (CPE) designation following completion of the culminating course, a two-week capstone seminar at APCO headquarters in Daytona Beach, Florida.

Please anticipate a brief downtime between 11PM and 3AM ET while infrastructure maintenance is performed on PSConnect Friday, May 21, 2021. We apologize for the disruption and appreciate your patience.

You'll get an inside look into how NG9-1-1 tech can enhance 9-1-1’s response to several incidents. Learn more about the 360 Experience and how providers like CentralSquare Technologies allow for seamless info sharing in a pursuit spanning multiple jurisdictions, incorporate pictures/videos from the caller on scene into the call for service record during a structure fire scenario, and much more.

Registration is available now for all training scheduled through June 2022 for APCO Virtual Classroom and online courses.

APCO's Certified Public-Safety Executive (CPE) Program is accepting applications for the next program - July 1, 2021 - January 14, 2022. Apply by May 15

May 19  |  1-2 p.m. ET
Free to members and worth one CDE
This webinar explores ways to apply a cybersecurity framework to the Next Generation 9-1-1 world.

Sponsored by Comtech

We can't wait to see everyone in sunny San Antonio this August. It's been way too long since we've been together and APCO 2021 is the perfect way to reconnect. 

Register by July 16 to get the early bird rate.

And be sure to check out the health and safety measures we're taking to keep everyone safe.

Save $100 on conference registration on April 5!  APCO 2021 is taking place August 15-18 in San Antonio, Texas.

Members can save up tp $300 on registration. Not yet a member? Join today to save.

April 22  |  1 p.m. ET
Free for members and worth one CDE

For 9-1-1 center managers, the past year has been more challenging than most. In addition to the every-day concerns of hiring, training, scheduling, retaining, monitoring quality and performance of employees, and budgeting for lean times, managers are now dealing with the after-effects of COVID and navigating new challenges around how to best manage and motivate multi-generational staffs.

Join 9-1-1 leaders for this Q&A roundtable as they discuss these and other top challenges and steps they’re taking to mitigate the potential outcomes from these challenges.

Have questions? Email them in advance to Karen.Carlson@nice.com.

Sponsored by NICE

March 31  |  1 p.m. ET  |  Free for everyone

The recipients of the prestigious 2021 Public Safety Communications Leadership in Policy Awards will be honored virtually this year during an online awards celebration taking place May 26.

The awards celebration commemorates leaders who have made outstanding contributions to public safety communications.

All can attend the virtual awards celebration.

APCO International is working with a graduate student from Texas Tech University to evaluate the interest level in an APCO mobile app among association members and others. Please take a few minutes to complete this six-question survey to help in this effort. Participation is voluntary and anonymous. 

A major infrastructure proposal - the LIFT America Act - has been introduced in Congress that includes $15 billion to support the deployment of Next Generation 9-1-1 throughout the country. Use APCO’s advocacy portal to send a letter asking for support to get this bill through the U.S. House of Representatives.

Join us virtually on May 26-27, 2021, for an interactive walk-through of diverse scenarios handled as they will be in the future. Members get major discount on registration.

What is Nexus?

Experience the emergency communications center of the future from the moment a 9-1-1 call comes in. Nexus takes real-life scenarios from mass casualty incidents to combined cyber/physical attacks and focuses on the communications between dispatchers and responders.

APCO is asking you to create our next conference shirt. Here’s what you’ll need to do:

Produce an original design that incorporates the host city San Antonio and/or the state of Texas, and the spirit of APCO International and emergency communications. Designs will be voted on and the winner’s artwork will be printed on the back of the next APCO conference shirt in San Antonio.

April 28  |  1 p.m. ET
Free to members and worth one CDE

Dispatch and emergency communications professionals face serious health risks. Common themes include traumatic stress, compassion fatigue, burnout, cardiovascular disease, obesity, vicarious trauma, and others. These often-overlooked professionals experience critical incident stress like many of their public safety colleagues. However, they do not always have the same tools needed to deal with what they witness from their end of the phone line. That’s why it’s critical to use the digital world and identify tools and resources for these professionals to have available wherever they are, whenever they need it. In this panel presentation, we will provide examples of dispatch and emergency communications professional distress and discuss two applications available in the FirstNet Catalog to help address some of these common risk factors.

We need volunteers to assist in the development of APCO American National Standards and in particular we need producers of public safety communications equipment, products, processes, systems and services. You do not need to be an expert or an APCO member to participate. Deadline to express interest is March 26.

Please anticipate a brief downtime between 11PM and 3AM ET while infrastructure maintenance is performed on PSConnect Friday, February 19, 2020. We apologize for the disruption and appreciate your patience.

February 17  |  1-2 p.m. ET
Free for members and worth one CEU

Learn about how you can join public safety agencies from all over the country who use Ring’s Neighbors Public Safety Service to enhance your community outreach efforts and help make neighborhoods safer.

Learn how to best handle calls on hostage situations, barricaded subject incidents and suicidal callers with the course Crisis Negotiations for Telecommunicators. Earn 8 CDEs for this one-day course which begins February 1. A discounted rate of $259 is available to APCO members to attend – all others $299.

February 17  |  1 p.m. ET
Free for members and worth one CDE

Learn about how you can join public safety agencies from all over the country who use Ring’s Neighbors Public Safety Service to enhance your community outreach efforts and help make neighborhoods safer.

Sponsored by Ring

January 28  |  1 p.m. ET
Free to members and worth one CDE

As a new wave of COVID cases take hold, emergency communication centers are feeling the pressure. Centers that were already experiencing staffing shortages before the outbreak are now dealing with surging call volumes, with even fewer telecommunicators to handle the phones. Join us for this training webinar as we share time-saving tips that will help your PSAP maintain high morale and operate smoothly during these challenging times.

Sponsored by NICE

The course Communications Training Officer (CTO) is now available in the APCO Virtual Classroom. Earn your CTO certification in just three days with this real-time, instructor-led interactive course, which focuses on developing a consistent and efficient new hire training program for emergency communications agencies. The next virtual classroom CTO course begins on January 25. Limited space. Discounted rates for APCO members.

Registration is open for the APCO Illuminations subscription program with new topics added for 2021. The program offers three online tracks to choose from - EMD, CTO or General Illuminations. Students earn CDEs for participation.