VIRGINIA APCO
Leaders in Public Safety Communications
PUBLIC SAFETY TELECOMMUNICATIONS AWARDS
The Virginia Chapter of APCO is pleased to recognize the outstanding achievements of public safety telecommunicators within the Commonwealth of Virginia. Awards for 2023 will be announced and awarded later this year (Spring Virginia NENA-APCO Conference). Nominations must be received no later than Friday, March 15, 2024 at 2359 hours.
General requirements for all the awards are listed below. Nomination forms for each award are listed below the specific criteria for that award.
Each year, we receive many outstanding nominations in each category. The program is successful because others took the time to nominate those outstanding telecommunicators. Please take the time this year to submit a nomination for an individual or team you believe to be worthy. We hope you will also take the time to pass the word to others in the public safety community in the Commonwealth of Virginia who may not be members of APCO.
General Requirements:
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Nominees must have worked in a communications center in the Commonwealth of Virginia or have retired within the last twelve(12) months.
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APCO membership is not necessary to qualify for an award.
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APCO membership is not necessary to make a nomination.
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Nominations must be received no later than Friday, March 15, 2024.
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All submissions must use the approved Nomination Forms which may be downloaded from this webpage.
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Be sure to respond to each and every criteria or question in the "criteria" section at the bottom of each application. These criteria are established to be sure that all nominees are afforded an equal consideration and that key information is available for the Awards Committee to review. If you need to amend a previously submitted nomination form, please do so prior to the deadline.
Specific Criteria for Nomination for Each Award
Outstanding INDIVIDUAL Performance in a Critical Incident
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The incident must have occurred between January 1, 2023, and December 31, 2023.
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The individual must have demonstrated extraordinary professional performance during an extremely critical incident.
Outstanding TEAM Performance in a Critical Incident
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The incident must have occurred between January 1, 2023, and December 31, 2023.
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The group must have demonstrated an extraordinary professional team performance during an extremely critical incident.
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Teamwork involved must have been the key to successful handling of the incident.
Stephen Souder TELECOMMUNICATOR of the Year Award
The nominee must:
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Exhibit a positive attitude towards all aspects of the job,
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Maintain good relationships with co-workers and representatives of other departments and agencies,
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Have the ability to function as a team member,
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Demonstrate professionalism and willingness to improve personal knowledge of the profession and share with others,
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Be willing to adapt to change, and
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Display exceptional courage, foresight, faithfulness and perseverance in the highest tradition of public safety service.
Nicholas E. Stepaniak TRAINER of the Year Award
The trainer of the Year Award recognizes an individual whose contributions are instrumental in the excellence and success of a training program within a Public Safety Communications Agency. The nominee must:
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Serve as a role model and display a positive attitude
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Demonstrate the highest level of commitment to the center's staff and their professional career development
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Accept constructive criticism and exercise fairness.
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Exemplify leadership, integrity, and vision
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Utilizes initiative, creative thinking, and is a team player
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Gain an appreciation for the operational function of the center
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Maintains a good working relationship with all aspects of the Public Safety Community
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Be a good "listener and solicits input from all levels of the organization
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Be willing to learn new technologies and enhance overall knowledge of the profession
LINE SUPERVISOR of the Year Award
The Line Supervisor of the Year Award recognizes the individual directly responsible for the daily shift operations of the communications center. The nominee must:
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Demonstrate the highest level of commitment to the employee's on their shift
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Exhibit integrity, fairness, and strong leadership skills
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Coach and encourage the strengths and skills to assist in achieving each employee's personal best
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Enhance the operation and morale of the center
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Maintain a positive rapport with all aspects of the Public Safety Community
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Demonstrates adaptability while maintaining control in critical incidents
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Lead by example and demonstrated the ability to operate as a team leader
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIST or RADIO FREQUENCY TECHNOLOGIST of the Year Award
The Information Technologist or RF Technologist of the Year award recognizes an individual who has demonstrated extraordinary technical knowledge and expertise in their support of public safety communications. The nominee must:
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Demonstrate a thorough knowledge of computer and information technology systems
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Provide technical support related to the effective operations of a communications center
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Participate in the evaluation and implementation of new computing technologies
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Provide project management for large scale support projects
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Perform routine to complex level application support work on the agency's computer application systems
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Perform advanced level communications work related to the purchase, installation and maintenance of communications equipment
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Demonstrate the ability to work with many different user agencies or
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Manage the installation, operation and maintenance of radio communications equipment
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Maintain a working knowledge of all public safety radio communications systems and equipment including 800 Mhz, P25, UHF/VHF radios, repeaters and mobile radio networks
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Install or oversee the installation of site ground, antenna systems, security systems, generators, towers, fuel systems and site alarms
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Prepare and maintain required records for FCC license
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Plan for infrastructure additions, site expansions and improvements as needed to insure coverage and system reliability
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Assist with developing and presenting budgets and recommendations for upgrading existing systems
Thomas Hanson Communications DIRECTOR of the Year Award
The Communication Center Director of the Year Award recognizes the individual responsible for the overall operations of the communications center. The nominee must:
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Serve as a role model and display a positive attitude
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Demonstrate the highest level of commitment to the center's staff and their professional career development
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Accept constructive criticism and exercise fairness
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Exemplify leadership, integrity, and vision
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Utilizes initiative, creative thinking, and is a team player
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Gain an appreciation for the operational function of the center
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Maintains a good working relationship with all aspects of the Public Safety Community
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Manage the installation, operation and maintenance of radio communications equipment
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Be willing to learn new technologies and enhance overall knowledge of the profession
Submission of Nominations
To permit electronic dissemination to the Awards Committee, nominations should be prepared electronically and saved in Microsoft Word or a compatible word processing program or be scanned and saved in Adobe PDF (.pdf) format.
Preferably, save your file with a naming format that identifies the jurisdiction or agency and the last name or team name nominated, i.e.:
"[Category] Nomination_Fairfax_LastName.doc" or "[Category] Nomination_VSP_ShiftA.doc".
Submit nominations (computer document) as attachments by e-mail to: Jada Lee no later than Friday, March 15, 2024 at 2359 hours.
You will receive an acknowledgement within 3 days. If you do not receive an acknowledgement, please confirm receipt with Jada Lee. In the absence of e-mail, flash drives or CDs may be sent to:
Jada Lee
VA-APCO Awards Committee
Director
Virginia Beach 9-1-1 Emergency Communications
2508 Princess Anne Rd.
Virginia Beach, VA 23456-2506
For questions or other information, call or e-mail Jada Lee (757) 385-4232.