Changes continue at Sheriff’s Office
By TONY BROWN Staff writer
Brent Blackburn, pictured, was recently hired to serve as the Nodaway County Sheriff’s Office dispatch coordinator and jail manager. Certified as an in-service dispatch instructor, Blackburn has worked part-time at the jail since 2015 and full time at the Cameron Police Department since 2010, were he served as assistant communications supervisor and trainer.
Less than two weeks into the new administration of Nodaway County Sheriff Randy Strong, changes continue at the Sheriff’s Office and jail.
On Wednesday, Strong received a pay grade approval from the County Commission for newly hired dispatch coordinator Brent Blackburn who has also assumed duties as jail manager.
Blackburn, 28, replaces former dispatch/jail manager Emma Barnett who is no longer with the agency.
Wage approval was required by the commission since county salaries are based on years of service and Blackburn, who has been working as a part-time dispatcher for Nodaway County since Oct. 2015, lacks Barnett’s seniority.
Since he will be doing the same job, Strong asked the commission to approve Blackburn’s pay at his predecessor’s level.
The commission granted the request on condition that the new dispatch supervisor forego a pay raise that would have been due to him on his part-time hire date anniversary this fall.
Blackburn’s new full-time role, therefore, will have no impact on the Sheriff’s Office budget.
The county’s pay schedule provides time-in-service wage increases for all employees every two years, and Blackburn will next be eligible for a pay increase on Jan. 1, 2019.
Following his meeting with the commission, Strong said Blackburn brings a strong skill set to the top dispatch position, having until recently served full-time as both assistant communications supervisor and trainer at the Cameron Police Department, which hired him in 2010.
A native of Hamilton, Blackburn began his career is 2007 as a dispatcher for the Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office.
“There has been a huge improvement already (in dispatch operations) in day 11 of my administration,” Strong told the commission. “… Brent brings so much to the table and is helping bring us to where we need to be.”
Among other things, Strong said, Blackburn has worked to improve dispatch and 911 procedures with regard to address protocols and the kinds of information relayed during pursuits and medical emergencies.
Going forward, the sheriff said Blackburn will take responsibility for a good portion of in-service dispatcher training, which is required annually, and already holds continuing-education instructor certification through the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials.
While certified to provide in-service training, Blackburn lacks instructional credentials for basic dispatch courses, which include an introductory unit known as the Basic 40, an emergency medical dispatch class, and training centered on MULES — the Missouri Uniform Law Enforcement System.
Nodaway dispatch hires currently receive such training either online or by traveling to a remote instructional site.
Blackburn said Wednesday that keeping county dispatchers up to date training-wise and providing improved “customer service” to deputies as well as first responders from other agencies are currently his top priorities.
“To me, training and customer service just go hand-in-hand together,” he said.
Other new personnel at the Sheriff’s Office since Strong was sworn in at the end of December include former Holt County sheriff Scott Wedlock, now serving as a captain, and retired Maryville Public Safety sergeant Rick Smail, who signed on as a deputy and D.A.R.E. instructor for Nodaway County’s rural school districts.
Additional changes include the promotion of Deputy Zach Long to investigator and the hiring of Deputy Chase Howell to fill an existing vacancy.
