Hamilton County 9-1-1 Staff | Hamilton County 9-1-1 Emergency Communications District

Jeff Carney

Executive Director

carney_j@hc911.org

Jeff Carney has overall strategic and operational responsibility for the District’s staff, programs, services and execution of its mission.

A Chattanooga native, he holds numerous certifications in Emergency Communications to include Emergency Number Professional (ENP) and Communications Unit Leader(COML) and has completed the National Emergency Number Association’s (NENA) Center Manager Certification Program (CMCP). He holds a number of Fire Service certifications and is a licensed Advanced Emergency Medical Technician in Tennessee.

Jeff is very proud to have begun his public safety career as a telecommunicator working with Hamilton County Emergency Services. He advanced to become a shift supervisor and later the training officer of that organization before assuming his present responsibilities with the 9-1-1 District. Altogether, Jeff has worked for over 30 years in emergency communications.

He believes very strongly in the professional role of the telecommunicator and works constantly to establish 9-1-1 as an equal partner in public safety along side of Fire, EMS, and Law Enforcement.

Jeff currently serves as 1st Vice President of the Tennessee Emergency Number Association (TENA) , as Chair of the Tennessee Valley Regional Communications System’s 9-1-1 Committee, Chair of the Tennessee Emergency Communications Board’s Operations Advisory Committee, as the Deputy State Coordinator for the Tennessee Telecommunicator Emergency Response Taskforce (TERT), on the National Joint TERT Initiative (NJTI), LLC Committee Board, and the Tennessee Emergency Communications Board’s Policy Advisory Committee.
Barbara Loveless

Director of Operations

loveless_b@hc911.org

The Director of Operations, Barbara R. Loveless, oversees the largest division in the District. The division consists of Public Safety Telecommunicators, their Supervisors, along with Training personnel and other operations staff. She is instrumental in: strategic planning, career development, establishing goals and objectives, measuring the effectiveness of programs, and implementing policies and procedures among several other duties. The role she is most passionate about however, is supporting the “boots on the ground” professionals of the 9-1-1 District as they serve the citizens and the first responders of Chattanooga and Hamilton County.

Barbara has over 17 years of experience in Emergency Communications as a Telecommunicator, Floor Supervisor, and most recently as a Training & Quality Assurance Specialist. She is an Emergency Number Professional (ENP), a Registered Public Safety Leader (RPL), and has completed the Center Manager Certification Program (CMCP) in addition to numerous other Public Safety and Emergency Communications certifications.

In addition to her extensive training, Barbara has earned several awards. In 2011, she was named the District’s “Training Officer of the Year.” In 2013, Barbara was named the Tennessee APCO Chapter Trainer of the Year. In 2016, she received the HC911 ECD Communications Supervisor of the Year award, and just last year, Barbara won the HC911 ECD Employee of the Year award.
Seth Graham

Director of Information Technology and Logistics

graham_s@hc911.org

Seth Graham oversees the daily operations of the Information Technology department and leads a team of highly skilled specialists in support of mission-critical telephony and computer-aided dispatch systems and is responsible for the District's overall strategic technical direction. Seth has been directly supporting public safety since 2007 when he started with the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office and has been with the District since 2012. Prior to working in public safety he held technical positions in the television and radio broadcast industry. Seth holds several industry certifications and has a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology Management and an Associate of Science in Information Technology.
Jay Donnick

Director of Administration & Finance

donnick_j@hc911.org

Jay Donnick is responsible for the financial operations of the District and oversees the administrative staff. A native of Illinois, she attended the University of Kentucky. After moving to Tennessee, she began her career with the ECD in 2000. She is a Certified Municipal Finance Officer (CMFO) and a member of the Society for Human Resource Management.
Dr. Angel Geoghagan

Director of Human Resources, Standards, & Compliance

geoghagan_a@hc911.org

Dr. Angel D. Geoghagan became a member of the Hamilton County Emergency Communications District in 2008 and currently serves as the Director of Human Resources, Standards, & Compliance. Prior to that, she was a sworn police officer for the Chattanooga (TN) Police Department. In addition to Human Resources functions she manages the accreditation process for the District assisting in getting the District accredited with the Commission on Accreditatiaon for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) in 2013.

She has worked in both CALEA Law Enforcement and Communications Accreditation since 1997. She serves as a Lead Assessor for CALEA assessing the operations of communications agencies across the country, serves on the Board of the Public Safety Communications Accreditation Support Network (PSCASN), and is a former board member for the Law Enforcement Accreditation Coalition of Tennessee (LEACT). She is a member of the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials (APCO) and has achieved her RPL certification. She is also a member of the Public Sector Human Resources Association (PSHRA) and is a Senior Certified Professional in Human Resource Management. She is also a certified Rule-31 Civil Mediator for the State of Tennessee. Dr. Geoghagan holds a Doctorate in Sociology/Criminology from the University of Tennessee.
Tamela Chamberlain

Training and Quality Assurance Manager

chamberlain_t@hc911.org

Tamela Chamberlain worked as a Sergeant for Hamilton County Emergency Services before joining the District as a member of the Training & Quality Assurance staff in June 2008. Chamberlain advanced to her current position in November 2008. She is dedicated to training quality telecommunicators, ultimately providing the highest level of service to those needing emergency assistance. With a background in emergency services and whitewater rafting, she has worked in all types of tricky situations, helping coach people through frustrating and difficult circumstances. In 2011, she led the four-member Training Staff to win the Tennessee APCO Chapter 9-1-1 Team of the Year Award.
Jared Pelham

Day Shift Supervisor

pelham_j@hc911.org

Jared Pelham began his career in Public Safety Communications in 2005 as a telecommunicator with Hamilton County Emergency Services. After joining the District in 2009, he became a Floor Supervisor on Evening Shift and joined the Training and Quality Assurance staff in 2013. He was promoted to Shift Supervisor in 2019.
Jimmy Hillis

Evening Shift Supervisor

hillis_j@hc911.org

Jimmy Hillis began his career as a part-time telecommuncator for the HCSO in 1985 to work his way through college. It became a career. After serving nine years as a Floor Supervisor, he was promoted to Shift Supervisor in 2018.
Katherine Rountree

Midnight Shift Supervisor

rountree_k@hc911.org

Katherine Rountree began her career in 2005 as a telecommunicator with Emergency Services. After consolidation, in 2009 Katherine was promoted to Floor Supervisor on midnight shift. In October 2019, she was promoted to Shift Supervisor.