WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International announced Chris Fischer, of its Washington chapter, was elected APCO International’s second vice president. She joins President Greg Ballentine of Missouri, President Elect Wanda McCarley of Texas, First Vice President Willis Carter of Louisiana and International Vice President Manfred Blaha of Austria in forming APCO International’s 2005-2006 Board of Officers.
“We are proud to officially welcome Chris to the Board,” APCO International President Greg Ballentine said. “She has been such an involved member and a staunch telecommunicator advocate over the years and we are more than confident in the knowledge and experience she will bring to the Board of Officers.”
Chris Fischer is currently the director of Valley Communications Center in Kent, Wash. Valley Communications Center is a nationally accredited, stand-alone combined police/fire/EMS emergency communications center in South King County, Washington. As director, Fischer is responsible for overseeing the 9-1-1 call answering and public safety dispatching for 27 agencies serving 655,000 citizens with a staff of 112. In 2004, Valley Communications Center answered and dispatched over 500,000 calls for service.
Fischer started her career with Valley Communications Center in August 1977, the first day of operations of the new communications center. She was one of 11 dispatchers hired for the new center. Fischer previously worked as a dispatcher for the Renton Police Department.
Fischer was promoted to deputy director in 1980. In that role, she established and administered hiring/screening and selection processes, developed the agency training program, supervised the shift supervisors and had responsibility for overall communications center operations. Fischer was appointed as director in Sept 1987.
Fischer is a Life Member of APCO International, who has served the association in a multitude of capacities, including participation as a member of APCO’s Project 33 Committee and a member of APCO’s Project Locate Committee. Fischer is also very active in the State of Washington and in King County, including participation as four-time chair of the Washington State E9-1-1 Program Advisory Committee (appointed by the Governor) and chair of the Washington Criminal Justice Training Commission’s Telecommunicator Standards and Training Program Oversight Committee.
“Chris is a long-time friend of the APCO family and an extremely respected and well-liked public safety colleague,” Ballentine added. “We look forward to working with her and learning from her experience in training and certification.”
About APCO International
The Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials International, Inc. is the world’s oldest and largest professional organization dedicated to the enhancement of public safety communications. APCO serves the professional needs of its 14,000 members worldwide by creating a platform for setting professional standards, addressing professional issues and providing education, products and services for people who manage, operate, maintain and supply the communications systems used by police, fire and emergency medical dispatch agencies throughout the world. For more information, visit www.apcointl.org.