Kurt Scholl is new director at Lorain County 911

Veteran Lorain County 911 employee Kurt Scholl is the emergency communication agency's new director after he took over this week for retiring director Rob Berner. Scholl, 55, of Birmingham in Erie County, celebrated his 27th anniversary with Lorain County 911 in September. A graduate of Lorain County Joint Vocational School, he started as a dispatcher at the agency, then made his way up to communications supervisor and deputy director, he said. He previously was interim 911 director from August to October 2021 during a change in leadership at the agency. Scholl spent 36 years as a firefighter, retiring in January as assistant chief of the Florence Township Fire Department in Erie County. He also spent 30 years as an emergency medical technician, or EMT, for several ambulance services in the area, he said. The first week in charge has been "business as normal," Scholl said, and helping out Mike Davis, a former communications supervisor who took over as deputy director when Scholl was promoted. Scholl said there won't be many major changes at 911, that he'll wait and see what needs to be done before making any. Dispatchers currently are on 12-hour shifts, part of a six-month trial. That gives them more time off, with every other weekend a three-day weekend, Scholl said. Scholl said there are currently 32 dispatchers at Lorain County 911, with a handful of others about halfway through their training. He said 36 is the "magic number" he wants to reach. "We just need a couple more to be where we want to be at," Scholl said. Scholl's salary is $48.16 per hour, or just over $100,000 annually, according to the county Fiscal Office. Berner retired effective Oct. 10. The mayor of Avon Lake from 2001-2007, he served as safety-service director for Port Clinton in Ottawa County from 2008-2009, then was executive director of the Lorain County Rural Wastewater District, or LORCO, until 2013. Hired by the commissioners in April 2023, Berner oversaw a hiring and training program for new dispatchers. New and often experienced hires were attracted to a department that had long struggled to keep staff, something Scholl said still is a problem for many emergency communication centers. Berner also oversaw a successful levy campaign in November 2023 that raised new money for Lorain County 911. Scholl said the levy is up for renewal next year. Berner replaced Jeff Young, a former Sheffield fire chief hired in October 2021 who still serves as emergency services coordinator at 911. Young replaced Harry Williamson, who served from January to August 2021 before he was fired by commissioners Matt Lundy, a Democrat, and David Moore, a Republican. The two commissioners voted to fire Williamson when they found out he was carrying on a secret extramarital affair with Commissioner Michelle Hung, also a Republican. Hung abstained from the vote to fire Williamson. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com.