'Intimate' class: Nine ATCEMS cadets graduate

Austin-Travis County EMS now has a new group of medics on the road.

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Austin-Travis County EMS now has a new group of medics on the road.

New cadets officially graduated on Friday, which will help alleviate a staffing shortage ATCEMS has faced.

Chief Robert Luckritz told KXAN Friday that having such an "intimate" class gave the graduates the opportunity to grow closer and integrate better into the career. However, the agency is still working to address the staffing shortage.

Back in 2022, ATCEMS had the highest vacancy rate when compared to authorized sworn positions, according to the City of Austin.

"Regardless of the size of the class that we graduate, it's just so important for us to be able to move forward and continuing to address the staffing shortage that we've had for the past few years. We're very excited that the trajectory that we have in terms of improving our staffing levels, we've seen dramatic improvements and from time to time, we're gonna see fluctuations in the size of the class," Luckritz said.

He said they anticipate a small class this time, and that the upcoming one will be one of the largest in quite some time.