Episode 43: How to Call 9-1-1, Part 2 with Guest Jeryl Anderson

Episode 43: How to Call 9-1-1, Part 2 with Guest Jeryl Anderson
We are excited to welcome Jeryl Anderson back to the podcast - especially after she was on our Voices of Passion panel on June 18th! She always has great educational information to share about how to properly utilize 9-1-1 (listen to her first episode on the podcast for more!), specifically the importance of “don’t hang up”, even if you call by accident.

After explaining her emergency communications work - including the new telecommunicating training system that was launched this year - Jeryl talks about her perspective as a Black woman 9-1-1 telecommunicator. She explains the Black and Brown experience using 9-1-1 and emergency services; the fear associated with it, as well as how they invite law enforcement/responders into their homes for a variety of reasons (domestic violence, mistrust in healthcare, reporting each other, etc.), and what can be done to change that. Jeryl gives an overview of the 9-1-1 system in NC, how training is shifting to community colleges, and details about her outreach coordinator job. She goes into the community to teach people how to properly use 9-1-1, what a real emergency is, and what to call if it’s not an emergency so you don’t clog the system. Jeryl believes making a change starts with educating children and sending information home to their families so they can learn too.

Listen to Jeryl’s first episode on the podcast! Episode 30: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3zsWNuM2n3KsWUBUwdNNFE?si=zF7TKdesS8GdK0YsovSR8Q

New Mental Health Hotline: The Lifeline and 988 : Lifeline (suicidepreventionlifeline.org)

More about Jeryl Anderson
Jeryl Anderson has worked in public safety emergency communications for over thirty years. She is currently employed at Orange County Emergency Services, as the Recruitment and Outreach Coordinator, and recently accepted a position with Durham Technical Community College, as their Coordinator for 9-1-1 Training. Jeryl has been a certified instructor since the 1990’s and has vast experience in classroom presentation, including curriculum and testing development, online course development and implementation. She is proud to have been at the beginning of the Telecommunicator Certification Course for North Carolina Telecommunicators, during her time as a Criminal Justice Instructor Coordinator with the NC Justice Academy, where for eleven years, she taught, edited, and implemented the curriculum across the state of North Carolina. Jeryl is an experienced online instructor, conference speaker and event coordinator. She is an RPL (Registered Professional Leader) and CPE (Certified Public Safety Executive) through National APCO and an ENP (Emergency Number Professional) through NENA.