Public Safety Division

Tlingit & Haida’s Public Safety Division aims to protect and serve employees, tribal citizens and communities by providing a safe and healthy work environment, public safety services to communities in Southeast Alaska, drug education to first responders, and helping communities develop and implement local emergency preparedness plans to respond to disasters.

The Public Safety Division provides direct oversight of the following programs and departments: » First Responders – Comprehensive Opioid Addiction & Recovery Program » Office of Emergency Management (OEM) » Village Public Safety Officer (VPSO) Program » Occupational Health & Safety Kíchgaaw Éesh Jason Wilson Director

ƒ Participated in Tlingit & Haida’s Lunchtime

Chats Facebook live session to expand VPSO outreach on social media; over 70 viewers tuned in. ƒ Successfully chairedstatewide working group meetings that discussed VPSO program needs. ƒ Provided testimony in support of the VPSO program to legislators on three occasions. ƒ Coordinated the distribution of over 2,000 Elder holiday gift packages with canned king salmon, jam, blueberry tea, lap blanket and safety supplies to help support our Elders during the

COVID-19 pandemic holiday season. ƒ Worked with community partners and AmeriCorps service members to create and distribute over 1,000 youth COVID-19 safety kits to tribal youth. ƒ Assisted Tlingit & Haida Community Councils in Anchorage, Petersburg, San Francisco, and Seattle with distributing food and safety supplies to tribal citizen families.

The First Responders – Comprehensive Opioid Addiction & Recovery program’s goal is to increase the capacity of VPSOs and other first responders in all Tlingit & Haida recognized communities to effectively respond to opioid overdose situations with emergency treatment through the administration of approved drugs or devices.

ƒ Hired Addiction & Recovery Coordinator and Administrative Assistant. ƒ Identified medical professionals to participate in first responders training.

Village Public Safety Officer Program

The VPSO program is administered in partnership with local municipalities and the Alaska State Troopers. The program provides rural Alaskan communities with public safety services such as search and rescue, fire protection, emergency medical assistance, crime prevention, and basic law enforcement. Additionally, the program trains and employs individuals residing in the village as first responders and was created to reduce the loss of life due to fires, drowning, lost person(s), and the lack of immediate emergency medical assistance in rural communities. The following communities participate in the VPSO program with positions paid through Tlingit & Haida’s payroll system: Angoon, Hydaburg, Kake, Kasaan, Pelican, Saxman, and Thorne Bay. ƒ Responded to over 1,800 incidents, surpassing the goal of 800+ responses in 2021. ƒ Successfully completed State grant audit with no findings. ƒ Secured approval on Pay Raise Proposal; State Commissioner awarded VPSOs a pay increase of $4.00 per Alaska State pay step. ƒ Continued work with the VPSO Legislative working group to update and reorganize the VPSO program. ƒ Continued VPSO professional development in the following areas: Alaska Law Enforcement Training (ALET) Academy, Emergency Medical Technician-2 (EMT-2), field training, Fire Academy, Hunter

Safety Train the Trainer, taser training, and Training Assistance Counseling (TAC).

ƒ Implement mandatory First Aid, CPR, and AED training for staff. ƒ Increase recruitment efforts to successfully place two VPSOs in each served community. ƒ Increase VPSO staff development by providing two trainings per year. ƒ Complete a community planning, consultation, and service model development plan for each

Tlingit & Haida VPSO community. ƒ Develop overdose intervention referral services between the VPSO/Tribal Family & Youth Services/

Tribal Courts and SEARHC for appropriate treatment and recovery within each VPSO community. ƒ Develop an advisory council comprised of members who are engaged in efforts to prevent prescription drug/opioid overdose-related deaths and launch quarterly meetings. ƒ Host an education session in each VPSO community to educate on “Good Samaritan” laws and how to administer FDA-approved overdose reversal drugs.