Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Workforce Public Safety topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
County, school district and sheriff honored with NACO award for public-safety career pipeline
Summary
Okeechobee County, the Education Foundation, the school district and Sheriff’s Office were recognized with a 2025 NACO Achievement Award for a coordinated public-safety career pipeline that includes state-certified fire CTE, 911 dispatch CTE, and cadet programs.
Okeechobee County and partner organizations received a 2025 National Association of Counties (NACo) Achievement Award for a local program designed to build a pipeline into public-safety careers.
County officials, school and sheriff’s office representatives told the board the program — titled "Okeechobee County Launching High School Heroes into Public Safety Careers" — coordinates a state-certified fire CTE program that awards industry-recognized certifications, a 911 dispatch CTE course with simulation-based training, and a public-safety cadet program that exposes students to leadership, service and emergency-response careers.
"From the standpoint of being recognized at the national level is extremely important for our community," Commissioner Terry Burrows said after accepting the award on the county’s behalf. County staff said the program was recognized as best in the criminal-justice and public-safety category for building a replicable model to strengthen local recruiting and retention in a rural county.
Panelists cited early signs of success: a student who graduated from the county’s CTE program and has been hired by the county’s fire/EMS service was introduced during the meeting, and board members said they have seen applications from students for fire and dispatch classes increase.
Why it matters: The award signals national recognition of a locally driven approach to address workforce shortages in fire rescue, dispatch and law enforcement. County and school leaders said the model could improve recruitment and local retention, especially in a rural market that historically loses young workers to larger metro areas.
