Scope Panel On Track To Hire Full-Time Coordinator

Thu., Nov. 25, 1999

Carlos Acevedo Staff Writer

After an eight-month vacancy, the Spokane County Sheriff’s Department may soon have a full-time SCOPE coordinator again, according to county officials.

The SCOPE board of directors stopped accepting applications Nov. 10 and will narrow the list of 37 hopefuls to a handful of top candidates at its meeting Tuesday.

Then it will be up to the board to determine when it will hire the next coordinator, said sheriff’s Lt. Gerry Fojtik. He’s expecting that will be at the beginning of the year.

“And it couldn’t happen soon enough,” he said.

Fojtik, interim SCOPE coordinator, shouldered the responsibility after the $19,500-a-year civilian position was cut from the Sheriff’s Department budget.

In October, department officials met with county commissioners to ask that they pick up the tab.

“(Sheriff) Sterk told them that we needed to have that position funded, and they were very supportive of that,” Fojtik said.

He cautioned that it is not official, however, until the commissioners approve the county budget in December.

Meanwhile, Fojtik is eager to be relieved, he said.

It’s not just that the extra duty takes away from his other responsibilities, Fojtik explained. Without a full-time coordinator, the SCOPE program has suffered as well.

SCOPE is Spokane County’s answer to community policing. Like the Spokane Police Department’s COPS program, SCOPE (Sheriff’s Community Oriented Policing Program) seeks to increase cooperation between the Sheriff’s Department and citizens by maintaining offices, called substations, in county communities.

Staffed by volunteers, the substations house various community policing programs, such as Blockwatch and Citizens’ Patrol.

Fojtik said he cannot devote much time to the program, and the 15 SCOPE substations, for the most part, have had to fend for themselves. Neighborhoods interested in starting new substations have been asked to wait.

“It could be running a whole lot better,” he said.

Fojtik said he expects the program will be much more progressive when the full-time coordinator is hired.

And it is a matter of “when,” not “if,” Fojtik noted.

While the passage of Initiative 695 has generated a wave of budget-cut proposals in both the city and county, the SCOPE coordinator job does not appear to be jeopardized.

“All indications are that the commissioners are still going to fund the job,” he said.

The person filling new full-time position will be an at-will employee of the SCOPE board and be paid $31,000 per year with benefits.

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.