California’s first mobile 911 dispatch classroom launches in Fresno

FRESNO, Calif. (FOX26) — A mobile classroom is giving Central Valley students a hands-on look at what it takes to answer 911 calls.

The classroom on wheels is one of only two in the nation, the first in California, and is part of the Fresno Regional Occupational Program’s dispatch pathway.

“Dispatchers are the steady heartbeat of the emergency response,” Fresno County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Michele Cantwell-Copher said during Monday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.

California’s first mobile 911 dispatch classroom launches in Fresno (Photo: FOX26 Photojournalist Byron Solorio)

Inside the trailer, students train at real dispatch consoles designed to mimic a live dispatch center.

The program is a partnership with Fresno City College, creating a pipeline from the classroom to dispatch careers.

The curriculum is backed by California POST, or the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, which sets minimum training and certification standards for law enforcement in the state.

It gives students the opportunity to practice call taking and scenario based decision making in a realistic and interactive setting,

said Michelle D., with POST.

The system uses realistic audio and artificial intelligence to recreate high-pressure simulations.

“If it’s a child that is injured, we can have the child crying in the background, so it really gives them that true, realistic first-hand experience,” said Veronica Cervantes, a Supervising Communications Dispatcher with the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.

Dispatch supervisors say programs like this one could help address a growing staffing shortage.

More people need to be in this profession. We are hurting for dispatchers

explains Matt Mendes, a Dispatch Supervisor with the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.

Officials say the job offers competitive benefits, including a starting salary of about $53,000, overtime opportunities, and the potential to earn six figures over time.