WOOD RIVER — Bringing national-level 911 training closer to home is opening new opportunities for emergency communications professionals across Madison County.
The National Emergency Number Association, or NENA, held a Conflict Management course on Wednesday in Collinsville, bringing together representatives from all seven Madison County public safety answering points, or PSAPs, along with 911 professionals from Southern Illinois and other downstate counties.
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Emergency Telephone System Board Chair Joey Petrokovich told fellow board members Aug. 27 that he attended the training the previous day and found the material valuable for 911 professionals at all levels of experience.
Petrokovich, with 25 years of experience in emergency communications, said the course offered lessons he could have used much earlier in his career.
“I’ve been in this profession for 25 years, and there were things I took away from this course that I wish I had learned much earlier in my career,” Petrokovich said. “The material is valuable whether someone has decades of experience or is just getting started in 911.”
The eight-hour course focused specifically on conflict in the 911 environment, including constructive criticism, difficult conversations, communication between employees and supervisors, de-escalation and conflict resolution.
Petrokovich said the instructor provided permission to use course material locally, creating an opportunity to incorporate some of the concepts into Madison County’s existing 80-hour telecommunicator training program.
911 Director Arron Weber said bringing the NENA course to Madison County took a coordinated effort by local 911 professionals who recognized the need for more training opportunities in downstate Illinois.
Weber credited Madison County 911 Training Administrator Tonya Beasley and Collinsville Police Department Civilian Support Services Supervisor Andrea Lindauer, as well as others with working to bring the class to the area.
“A lot of these NENA courses are held in the northern part of the state, and that makes it difficult for our people to take advantage of them,” Weber said. “Tonya and Andrea put a lot of work into getting this course here and creating an opportunity not only for Madison County, but for 911 professionals throughout downstate Illinois.”
The Collinsville class served as an opportunity to gauge interest in hosting more NENA training locally. Weber said the response could lead to additional courses in Madison County.
Hosting additional training locally would give telecommunicators, supervisors and other emergency communications professionals greater access to specialized instruction while reducing the time and expense associated with traveling farther north.
“This showed there is a need and an interest in bringing these courses downstate,” Weber said. “We want to build on that and continue working with NENA to provide quality training opportunities here.”
Petrokovich said expanding those opportunities can strengthen individual 911 centers while also building relationships among emergency communications professionals across the region.
“911 is a profession where you never stop learning,” Petrokovich said. “If we can bring training like this closer to home and make it accessible to more people, we’re strengthening the professionals who answer those calls every day and the service they provide to their communities.”
