WINSTON-SALEM — Grayson Gusa of Salisbury was sworn in as the 59th chapter president of the North Carolina Association of Public Safety Communication Officers during an awards and installation banquet at the group’s 2019 conference in Winston-Salem.

His term as chapter president will run through May 2021.

Gusa is the training supervisor for the Davie County 911 Communications Center in Mocksville. He has worked in public safety communications since 2002 and has been a member of APSCO International since 2003.

In 2012, he became one of the first seven people in the state to obtain the professional designation of registered public-safety leader. In addition to his duties as chapter president and with Davie County 911, he is a member of the education committee of the North Carolina 911 Board.

During his remarks to members, Gusa outlined his initiative to continue promoting the reclassification of public safety telecommunicators through the U.S. Office of Management and Budget from an office and support occupation to a protective service occupation and promoting the 911 Saves Act introduced in the U.S. House by Rep. Norma Torres of California.

“While this bill continues to gain traction, we must remember that this is just a small step to ensuring the true recognition of the jobs performed by professional public safety telecommunicators throughout the state and nation on a daily basis,” he said. “This recognition is truly something that must begin at the local and state level, and I intend to use the resources of North Carolina APSCO to advocate for this much needed acknowledgement of the true-first first responders who serve behind the scenes.”

North Carolina APSCO has more than 1,400 members. Founded in 1935, APSCO International has 30,000 members and is the world’s oldest and largest nonprofit association of professionals who manage and operate public safety communications systems for law enforcement, fire, emergency medical and other public safety agencies.