Umatilla County Dispatch Manager Capt. Karen Primmer has received the 2023 911 Manager of the Year Award from The Oregon Chapter of Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO).
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Fellow staff members in a statement said “Capt. Primmer 100 percent exemplifies the criteria for this award. Thank you, Karen, for your incredible leadership, commitment to excellence, and genuine care for your staff. You have gone above and beyond on countless occasions to make UCSO Communications what it is today.”
The Manager of the Year Award recognizes the administrator, director or manager not assigned to first-line supervision in the dispatch center, whose efforts on behalf of their agency demonstrate the highest level of commitment to its personnel, partner agencies and customers.
According to APCO, professional development and well-being of personnel, excellence in customer service and progressive/innovative paths to the future are focal goals. Recipients exemplify leadership, integrity, trustworthiness, dependability and forward-thinking on a global level; coaches and encourages strengths in all personnel; demonstrates initiative and creativity in the development and implementation of policies, procedures, systems and programs; directs efforts toward developing and maintaining positive morale within the agency; lives the example of ethical behavior on a daily basis; builds bridges and cohesive relationships both within the agency and with partners, associates, and the public, to the benefit of all.
Primmer will be recognized and presented the award at the 2024 APCO Oregon Training Conference and Awards Banquet in Bend in September.