The 911 data needs to be ingested and standardized. We have built a data classification tool called Classifyr that will match local 911 call types with standard industry codes. This step will allow any city’s 911 activity to be compared against standardized data from other jurisdictions.

The standard we use is called APCO, which stands for the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials. APCO is the closest to a national set of codes that currently exists.

Why is this important?

By standardizing call types, we can compare datasets in different cities, and start to see similarities and differences in the data.

Call Type Standardization Activity: Working in Classifyr

  1. You and your team will receive an invite to Sign Up for Classifyr
  2. You will be assigned the Role of Data Classifier.
  3. On the left panel, you will see Datasets.
  4. Click on Datasets, and you will see all of the datasets in Classifyr. On the top right, you will see a button that says Upload Dataset.
  5. Click on Upload Dataset, and follow the steps to upload your city’s dataset.
  6. When the upload is complete, click on Classification on the left panel.
  7. On the Classification page, click on your city.
  8. At the top of the page you will see a call type, and a chart with an example of the call type records.
  9. Scroll down and you will see Classify Call Type, with a search bar underneath.
  10. In the search, start by typing in the call type as it is written. You will start to see options for APCO codes that could be a match for this call type.
  11. Select the call type that is the closest match. Some will be exact matches.
  12. Assign a Confidence Rating to your selection. Using the dropdown, select Low Confidence, Somewhat Confident or Very Confident.
  13. If you select Low Confidence or Somewhat Confident, you will be shown a text box to Describe your reasoning for your selection. This is optional. If you select Very Confident, there is no text box.