APCO Member & Chapter Services Monthly E‐Newsletter

April 2009

Greetings to the APCO Chapter & Affiliates that I support as part of my duties with the APCO

Member and Chapter Services Committee.

Colorado

Kansas

Nebraska

*****CHAPTER OFFICERS: Please present this information to your chapter members

electronically and at meetings or presentations. *****

Membership Numbers as of April 1, 2009.

Commercial 1,191 ‐ a 8.0 percent decrease over last year.

‐ a 22.5 percent decrease over last month.

‐ 9.5 percent of the total membership.

Active 7,632 ‐ a 2.8 percent decrease over last year.

‐ a 14.0 percent decrease over last month.

‐ 61.1 percent of the total membership.

Members 3,663 ‐ a 4.5 percent decrease over last year.

‐ a 18.4 percent decrease over last month.

‐ 29.3 percent of the total membership.

TOTAL: 12,486 ‐ a 3.8 percent decrease over last year.

a 16.2 percent decrease over last month.

As you can see above, each membership category reflects a decrease from the prior month

and year. As of the end of March all members who had not yet renewed their membership

for 2009 were dropped from the membership roles. Chapters should check their drop lists

and contact their members to see if they

are in fact dropping their membership or just did

not yet renew it. Some may have believed their agency was paying but due to the economy

downturn have not done so this year. For membership and renewal information go to

http://www.apcointl.org/new/membership/join.php.

In the month of March 2009 a total of 219 new members joined APCO.

The top new individual categories: Telecommunicator/Dispatcher 38%

Supervisor 26%

Engineer 7%

APCO Institute Leadership Certificate Program (RPL)

Thinking about becoming a Registered Public Safety Leader? Applications are currently being

accepted for the July 15th class. RPL recipients receive a certificate of acceptance into the

APCO Institute Registry of Public‐Safety Leaders, a formal and prestigious acknowledgement

of excellence within our industry.

The RPL Program is a series of online courses offered by APCO Institute, in cooperation with

Flexstudy.com, the American Management Association’s e‐learning provider. You’ll learn

how to Communication with Authority, Build and Manage High‐Performance Teams, Break

Down the Barriers to solid Interpersonal Negotiations, Enhance Team Performance, Lead with

Confidence and Integrity, Make a Difference Within our Association and our Industry, and

Apply the Skill Sets Learned for the Betterment of Our Association and Our Industry.

For information on scholarships and an application go to:

http://www.apcointl.com/institute/RPL_program.htm.

For information on the APCO Institute and other classes available, you can visit their website

at http://apcointl.org/institute/.

Chapter Officer Teleconference Calls

The Member and Chapter Services Committee would like to thank all those members who

took the time to call in for the April Chapter Officer Teleconference Calls. The calls were all

very well attended and Chapter Officer participation on the calls was excellent. Good

questions and interaction among the members.

The topics of Chapter Historian and SGI Update were present well and the committee would

like to thank the Historical Committee and APCO Deputy Executive Director for taking the

time to make these presentations.

Our next round of chapter officer teleconference calls will be scheduled for sometime in

September.

Pacific Chapter Update

The Pacific Chapter of APCO continues to make great strides in their effort to re‐vitalize the

chapter. The Pacific Chapter is made up of the State of Hawaii, Guam and American Samoa.

As of this writing I am pleased to say the Chapter currently has 31 members. If anyone knows

public safety professionals within the Pacific Chapter area please take the time to let them

know APCO is alive and well, seeking new and old members alike.

Early in April APCO members held a formal meeting of the Chapter resulting in the election of

a Pacific Chapter Board of Officers. I am pleased to announce that Thalia Burns of the

Honolulu Police Department was elected the new President and Executive Council Member.

Please make sure in your travels you take the time to introduce yourselves and welcome the

members of the re‐vitalized Pacific Chapter.

Anyone for a Game of APCO‐opoly?

Help support your association and become a sponsor of APCO International’s

75thAnniversary Edition of APCO‐opoly. Certain to be a collector’s item and with the game’s

unlimited shelf life, your Chapter will gain visibility every time public safety communications

professionals play with family and friends. Your support helps support projects for public

safety communications.

APCO‐opoly’s diverse sponsorship options fit into any budget. Sponsorships include APCOopoly

Money, Property Deed Cards, Patrons (Center of Board), Corners (GO!, Jail, Free

Parking. Go Directly to Jail), and Properties or Utilities. Sponsorships are open to APCO

Chapters and Commercial Members. What better way to put your Chapter or Corporate

name out in front of the public.

Reserve Your Space Today! To sign up for a sponsorship and for more information, please

contact Kathy Schatel at 386‐944‐2483 or e‐mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Professional Communications Human Resource Taskforce (PRO‐CHRT)

On April 20, 2009, APCO announced their intent to study the current status of training

standards and certification requirements, retirement options and other key human resource

issues related to public safety communications professionals. The study will be conducted by

a newly appointed Professional Communications Human Resource Taskforce (PRO‐CHRT).

The taskforce will initiate a study to identify the professional certification levels and

minimum training requirement for public safety communications professionals in the U.S. as

well as examine retirement benefits and the Fair Labor Standards Act as they pertain to

public safety communications professionals’ compensation and scheduling.

The PRO‐CHRT study will lead to a toolbox intended to help our association members

empower themselves to address these issues in their own states and will include a synopsis

of state labor laws, retirement benefits and training and certification requirements. The

deliverables of this taskforce will include sample legislation and effective strategies for

advocating for these issues.

This is another important task undertaken by our association to better our profession.

APCO Institute Pre‐Conference Courses

Attending the APCO National Conference this August in Las Vegas? Prior to the start of the

annual conference APCO Institute offers several APCO training courses. These courses

provide the opportunity to obtain training while you are away for the conference. This year

the Institute is offering the following courses:

Communications Training Officer August 14 – 16, 2009

Communications Center Supervisor August 14 – 16, 2009

Active Shooter August 16, 2009

CISM: Group Crisis Intervention August 14 – 15, 2009

Make sure your chapter members are aware of these training classes and the opportunity to

broaden their professional background. To view complete information and register for these

and any other APCO Institute courses visit APCO Institute web site at

http://www.apcointl.com/institute/schedule_registration.htm.

Here to serve.

As your Chapter Representative on the Member & Chapter Services Committee please feel

free to contact me with any questions or issues you feel I could be a help with. I may not

know all the answers but I can certainly help to get you headed in the right direction.

Cheryl S. Giggetts, PMP

Senior Vice President, CTA Communications

Member & Chapter Services Committee AECOM Design

Serving the Colorado, Kansas 20715 Timberlake Road, Ste 106

and Nebraska Chapters Lynchburg, VA 24502

434‐239‐9200 Office

434‐239‐9221 Fax

434‐258‐8427 Mobile

email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Web Site: www.ctacommunications.com