Santa Rosa County 911 Coordinator Kevin Sowell was recognized as NICE’s Public Safety Answering Point’s finest technician of the year. Sowell has been employed with Santa Rosa County since October 1992 and has been a dispatcher, a dispatch supervisor and 911 coordinator as well as serving as the quality assurance and training coordinator for the last seven years. He has led significant technology efforts to enhance operational capabilities for the county’s 911 center including coordination and support of many cooperative technology partnerships with neighboring counties.
Under his direction and coordination with the county GIS team, Santa Rosa County has initiated a significant GIS project to update, create and prepare his data for a transition to next-generation 911. Most significant is his effort leading a 12-county regional ESInet, GIS and geospatial call routing project which will significantly increase system redundancy, aid in disaster recovery efforts and reduce overall system operating costs to each county. The regional project covers all counties from the Alabama line east to the Tallahassee area.
“Without Kevin’s vision and insistence to keep Santa Rosa County in the forefront of modern technology, we would not have the advantage of the most up-to-date center in northwest Florida,” said Communications Chief Scott Markel. “I personally rely on Kevin to not only keep us in the forefront of the latest technology but to keep the daily operations of the 9-1-1 center running smoothly in my absence. Kevin is a true asset to the county.”
