After nearly 20 years in emergency communications at the City of Dublin, Lauren Yankanin has joined Delaware County as its new director of DelComm, the county’s emergency communications department.

Yankanin is a graduate of The Ohio State University with degrees in criminology and sociology. She applied for a job as a dispatcher for the City of Dublin in 2004, believing it to be a job that was “somewhat relatable” to her field of study.

“I didn’t know at the time that this was going to become a profession I was passionate about,” Yankanin said. “Here I am in my 19th year in emergency communications.”

Yankanin said she has several relatives in law enforcement and comes from a public service background. Additionally, she earned her Master of Public Administration degree from Kent State University.

The Delaware County Board of Commissioners hired Yankanin in August to fill the position vacated by previous director Patrick Brandt, who left the county to lead the State of Ohio’s 9-1-1 Program Office as its new administrator.

“I did not think this position would ever be open,” Yankanin said. “It never occurred to me. I knew (Brandt) very well and (thought) he was always going to be here. When the position became available, I thought this was a wonderful opportunity.”

Yankanin has lived in Delaware County since 2006 and in Delaware city since 2014. While she was very passionate about serving the Dublin community, Yankanin said she always felt a “missing piece of that ownership that you have when it’s where you live.”

“One thing that really excited me (about this position) is the opportunity to serve the community I live in,” Yankanin said.

Serving in her new position since Aug. 29, Yankanin said she is enjoying getting to know everyone and everything at the 9-1-1 center.

“I am excited to have achieved a goal of mine. I always wanted to lead a communications center,” Yankanin said. “I’m excited that I’ve reached this goal. I’m excited at the opportunity to work with a new group of people, some of which I know — Dublin and Delaware have worked closely together. I’m really thrilled to get to work with this group of folks that we have here. They’ve all been wonderful. I’m excited to see where the future takes us.”

Yankanin said the people and technology at DelComm are a “great foundation,” and she’s looking forward to developing an extensive familiarity with the culture and people at the center.

”I think we’re going to take that and pump it up to the next level,” Yankanin said.

Delaware County reports that in 2022, DelComm processed more than 102,000 calls and, of that total, 99.7% were answered within 10 seconds, far exceeding the national industry standard of 90%.

Glenn Battishill can be reached at 740-413-0903 or on Twitter @BattishillDG.