Pre-conference Courses
Come two days early to earn 16 CDEs before the conference even starts.
Register for Pre-conference Courses
Get the most out of your APCO 2025 experience and sign-up for a pre-conference course, including in-depth, in-person training courses provided by the APCO Institute.
Disaster Operations
Disaster Operations and the Communications Center, 2nd Ed.
July 25-26, 2025
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor - Paca Room
401 W Pratt St, Baltimore, MD 21201
This course serves to educate telecommunicators and other ECC staff on a wide range of topics, beginning with the issues they face ensuring continuity of operations for the comm center itself. From there, the course looks at the role of the ECC in emergency operations plans and how local and state plans fit into the larger scheme of U.S. homeland security and national response doctrines on disaster readiness and recovery. The course also looks at specific issues related to many disaster situations.
The importance of training to ensure emergency communications professionals know their role and the role of the ECC in disaster operations is greater than ever before. There is a defined role for public safety communications in every element of disaster response and recovery. As public safety’s ability and need to address disaster situations evolves, the telecommunicator needs to be familiar with all types of disasters – man-made and natural – and how those events can impact public safety communications as well as the communities they serve. The course features practical exercises and scenario training.
CDEs Earned: 16
Cost: Non-member $410 | Member $360
Staffing and Retention
Staffing and Retention for the ECC, 2nd Ed.
July 25-26, 2025
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor - Ruth Room
401 W Pratt St, Baltimore, MD 21201
APCO’s Staffing and Retention for the ECC, 2nd Edition course seeks to address many of the challenges that ECCs face in both recruiting and retaining effective staff. Focusing on both policy and culture changes that can be made to improve employee satisfaction and support staff in both their current and future positions with the agency.
This course is designed to provide guidance and information to ECC employees at any level. Drawing in both current employment factors, industry standards, APCO industry research efforts such as Project RETAINS, and ongoing workforce trends, this course offers key strategies and tips on topics ranging from motivation and incentives, development for future leadership, scheduling, and compensation. This course also includes several resources your agency can draw from and customize to use.
CDEs Earned: 16
Cost: Non-member $410 | Member $360