Tech college wants to train dispatchers
By Joey Berlin
Originally published 01:04 p.m., May 13, 2008
Updated 01:04 p.m., May 13, 2008
A new program approved Monday by the Flint Hills Technical College would give students an early chance to explore a field with a high burnout rate.
At its monthly meeting, the college’s board of trustees recommended that the Kansas Board of Regents approve FHTC’s EMS dispatch technology certification program. The program would grant students an 18-credit-hour technical certificate to become dispatchers. The 18 hours are spread over 10 courses.
FHTC’s technical certification program would be unique in the state. Hutchinson Community College is the only school in the state that offers a dispatch program, and its program is an associate degree tract.
Barb Evans of FHTC’s EMS department told board members that the only actual requirement to fill a dispatcher job right now is a high school diploma or GED.
“I do anticipate, from the needs assessment that we put out,” Evans said, “that our students would be put up a little bit higher on the ladder” with regard to job openings after completing the program..
Board member Jim William actually once worked as a 911 emergency dispatcher in Rapid City, S.D.
“And I agree, there was a level that, if you came in with some kind of expertise and some kind of knowledge of the job, you did get started on a higher pay scale,” William said.
Evans said many dispatchers, having received no training or preparation prior to entering the field, realize the job is too stressful for them once they get started. Board member Paula Taylor agreed.
“Because what they’re doing now is on-the-job training, and it’s very rigorous training, and they realize they don’t like it,” Taylor said.
Taylor said she thought the new program would result in “outstanding” hireability for FHTC students.
If the board of regents approves the new dispatcher program, it would start next spring. It is expected to bring in about $1,741 from each student, $2,134 of post-secondary aid and a total income of $24,770.
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