Washington, DC — The E9-1-1 Institute, the National Emergency Number Association (NENA), the Association of Public-Safety Communications-Officials (APCO) International, the National Association of State 9-1-1 Administrators (NASNA), and the 9-1-1 Industry Alliance (9IA) announced the opening of nominations for this year’s Seventh (7th) Annual Honor Awards ceremony. The organizations, representing 25,000 members in every state in the Nation, hold the awards ceremony each year where heroes and leaders in the 9-1-1 field are jointly honored by both the E9-1-1 Institute and the Congressional E9-1-1 Caucus.
This year’s ceremony will be on Tuesday, March 16th, 2010. The Co-Chairs of the Congressional
E9-1-1 Caucus are invited to present the awards. Heroism and leadership activities throughout the year of 2009 will be considered for the awards.
 

The E9-1-1 Institute is now accepting nominations in following categories:
• 9-1-1 Call-Taker/Dispatcher Award:  This award honors the “first, first responders”—the 9-1-1 Call-Takers and Dispatchers who are on the front line every day.  Candidates for this honor should have a proven track record of service in the field and a reputation for going the extra mile on behalf of emergency callers.
• Citizen in Action:  The Citizen in Action award honors someone who demonstrated exceptional bravery and heroism to save a life in a critical time using 9-1-1.
• First Responder Award:  The First Responder Award recognizes those individuals that 9-1-1 telecommunicators (people) call—e.g. law enforcement, fire rescue and or emergency medical service providers—for their professionalism, initiative, creativity or diligence in assisting a person reporting and/or experiencing an emergency situation.
• Government Leader Award (Federal / State / Local):  This award recognizes the Federal, State or Local Government Leader that has displayed the greatest effort to advance the capabilities of 9-1-1 emergency communications.
• Industry Professional Award: The Industry Professional Award honors an individual or organization in the commercial sector that has demonstrated exceptional contributions towards the advancement of emergency 9-1-1 communications.
• 9-1-1 Technician Award:  This award recognizes the Technology Support staff—e.g. Information Technology, GIS and other technical personnel within a 9-1-1 authority or jurisdiction whose tireless efforts make available and maintain the critical technology systems necessary to answer, process and respond to emergency calls. 
• Outstanding 9-1-1 Call Center Award: This award recognizes a 9-1-1 call center for overall excellence in serving the public including the handling of emergency situations reported to 9-1-1 and the deployment and management of new technology.
• Outstanding 9-1-1 Program Award: This award recognizes a state or regional 9-1-1 program for excellence in serving the public including the handling of emergency situations and the deployment and management of new technology.
The nomination submission form and instructions can be submitted on-line at www.e911institute.org.

 A committee of the E9-1-1 Institute will review each nomination and select the winners who will be invited to attend the 7th Annual 9-1-1 Honors Gala in Washington, DC on March 16th, 2010.