While several have had the surreal experience of dialing 911, few may know what goes on behind the scenes. Surrounded by monitors and radios, waiting for the phone to ring, Jordyn West is always alert and ready to calm those in a crisis.
West, who graduated from LCM in 2016, works as a 911 dispatcher for Montgomery County taking emergency calls. Working 12-hour shifts, her day starts early in the morning.
“When I get to work, I log in to my console which consists of seven huge computers and radios for dispatch,” West said.
Once she’s set up, West is assigned either public safety, fire department, or 911 calls for that day.
“I must be extremely focused and detailed in what I’m doing the full 12 hours,” West said. “These kinds of jobs can be heavy/mentally draining. Hearing what I hear on the daily can be extremely difficult or upsetting.”
While being a dispatcher is sometimes challenging, West said she loves her job.
“I have a passion for helping others during a crisis,” West said. “If I can help someone in a time of need, then I go home satisfied with my work.”
West graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Sam Houston State University and is currently pursuing a master’s degree online in marriage and family therapy through Lamar University.
One of her biggest accomplishments is completing the training to become a dispatcher. She is also planning to expand her career by starting EMT classes this August where she will become certified in Texas to work on an ambulance. Her long-term goals are to become a paramedic so that she can work part-time in the field.
Her background involves working directly with others during difficult times.
“My past experiences have been more focused on mental health crisis while my current job focuses more on physical crisis,” West said. “I’m used to working physically demanding jobs (such as breaking up fist fights, stopping suicidal/homicidal behaviors, restraining, etc.).”
Before becoming a dispatcher, West worked with juveniles in mental health and behavioral aspects. She has worked with teenage boys in CPS with behavioral problems and teenage girls incarcerated in Texas.
“My past jobs have taught me so much and shaped me into the person I am today,” West said. “I have also shaped the lives of many young girls and boys who have had extremely difficult childhoods. Hearing you have made a difference in a kid’s life is one of the most rewarding parts of what I do and have done.”
West would encourage high school students to take a deep breath if they are stressing about college, what to do after graduation, where their friends are going to be, and where they’re going to move.
“You do not have to have your life figured out,” she said. “For most of you who think they do, plans/careers/life changes quickly. Go into things with an open mind and no expectations. You will succeed, fail, make wonderful memories, and have lots of hardships. In the end you will end up where you are meant to be eventually.”
