At age 28, Jason Lezcano, the 9-1-1 systems operations coordinator for Morris County Law (NJ) Law and Public Safety, is an accomplished professional. Prior to assuming his current supervisory position, which he has been in for four months, he served as a calltaker for a little over three and one-half years. He holds an Associate of Arts degree in Business from Phoenix University.

At age 16, he joined the local (Denville) Volunteer Fire Department, and he presently still serves as a volunteer for the department. He moved through the ranks and achieved the level of Assistant Chief.

Lezcano met his wife when he was a Lieutenant in the fire department and she was an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT). They are married five years, and they have three children—Abigail, 4; Jason, 3; Theodore, 7 months. His wife currently is employed as a nurse.

When he heard the Dover Police Department was hiring telecommunicators, he applied. He was hired part-time and he worked as a public safety telecommunicator for five years. From there, he moved to his position in Morris County.

In order to be a dispatcher, Lezcano says, multi-tasking is critical. “It is an important part of the job—whether fire or police agency. It is the most important task of all.” In addition, good communication skills are essential. He also points out the necessity to not become frustrated. Recognizing that some are not educated about how the emergency system works, it is important to be patient and remain calm under pressure to deal with rough times and severe emergencies.

As a current supervisor and former line dispatcher, Lezcano believes anyone can be a calltaker. “As long as you are willing to put in the hard work, it’s just having the willingness to learn and willingness to apply those skills. It took time for me to learn those skills and be where I am today,” he said.
Lezcano points out that the most challenging aspect of the job is dealing with the public and being able to provide for them properly. “It can be very stressful at times. Sometimes you need to have tough skin,” he says. In order to deal with the related stress, Lezcano recommends talking to colleagues and supervisors. “Talking amongst peers is a big helper,” he says. Lezcano will sometimes talk to his wife about work-related issues. “Her having knowledge of what takes place is beneficial to me, and a stress reducer to me as well,” he says.

Though dispatchers take a diverse nature of calls, anything involving a child is the most difficult for Lezcano. As a father, he says, “I put my kids in my mind at all times.” He acknowledges that domestic calls can also be difficult depending on the level of the call and how it plays out.

As a supervisor, Lezcano manages the day-to-day operations and oversees 15-16 employees at a time. Being entrusted with quality assurance as well as providing leadership, he has to think outside the box to motivate staff. The key component, Lezcano says, is to make them happy and motivate them to want to come to work.

For Lezcano, his boss has been a positive influence for him. “I look up to my current boss a lot. He’s been a great mentor. He cares–which is the most important quality. He cares about the employees himself. He has a lot of great qualities. He makes sure he knows everything before he addresses issues,” Lezcano says.

Lezcano points out that anyone who is thinking about dispatching should look at it as a career. “It is a very important job,” he says. As far as his own career future, he admits he would like to continue on the administrative side of things. With the success he has achieved thus far, there is no doubt he will continue to blossom on his career journey in public safety communications.

Karen L. Bune serves as an adjunct professor at George Mason University and Marymount University in Virginia, and she is a consultant for the Training and Technical Assistance Center for the Office for Victims of Crime and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice. She is a nationally recognized speaker and trainer on public safety issues. Ms. Bune is Board Certified in Traumatic Stress and Domestic Violence, and she is a Fellow of The Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress and the National Center for Crisis Management. She serves on the Institutional Review Board of The Police Foundation, Washington, D. C.