Play in Public Defender Charity Golf Event

(L to R) Deputy Public Defender Frank Barone, Deputy Public Defender David Lamb, Chargers kicker Nick Novak, and Chief Deputy Public Defender Randy Mize

The San Diego County Public Defender Community Outreach Charity Golf Tournament and Dinner will tee off later this month and there’s still time to sign up for the 18-hole friendly competition.

This year’s tournament is Tuesday, March 31—Cesar Chavez Day—at Sycuan Golf Resort in El Cajon.

The annual event benefits the San Pasqual Academy (SPA),a home and school for foster teens. The 238-acre campus opened in 2001 and has capacity to serve 184 youth aged 12 to 18.

San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore and Supervisors Greg Cox and Ron Roberts will get into the golf game, too. The trio will serve as honorary chairs.

Frank Barone, a deputy public defender and former Community Outreach board member, said the Sycuan Tribe generously offered to host this year’s event at their golf resort at a reduced rate.

“This will result in a dramatic increase of our charitable donation to the foster students at SPA,” said Barone, who added that supporting the school is a natural fit for his department.

The Public Defender Community Outreach Program has raised $125,000 for the school since 2010.

Registration is $135 per player or $500 for a foursome and includes golf cart, practice range balls, box lunch and dinner with prizes, an award ceremony and charity auction. If you can’t make the tournament, you can just do dinner for $75. And of course, you can also make a donation.

To participate, visit the San Diego County Public Defender Community Outreach online for an entry form. Return the form with payment by Friday, March 20.

CWS Social Workers Honored

Stephanie Bailey, left, was honored with the 25th annual Jay Hoxie Award presented by Debra Zanders-Willis, CWS director. The award is giving to a social worker to recognize their commitment to others through volunteer work.

It started as a special birthday present request by Health and Human Services Agency social worker Stephanie Bailey, and five years later it’s still benefiting children and families in need across San Diego County.

Bailey asked her family members to celebrate her birthday in 2009 by volunteering with the Homeless Coalition. They collected gifts for needy children for distribution during the holidays that year.

The following year, Bailey and her family created the East County Christmas for Kids project with the goal of providing a gift, book, food, stocking and visit from Santa for children in need up to 12 years old in East County. Last year the project was able to brighten the holidays for about 1,800 children.

At yesterday’s Child Welfare Services (CWS) social worker appreciation event, Bailey received the Jay Hoxie Award, given each year to recognize a social worker for commitment to others through volunteering in the community. The honor is named after Jay Hoxie, an HHSA social worker who died in a car accident in 1990. He was well known for his generous spirit and community involvement.

“Social workers are always there to make a difference in a child’s life,”  Dr. Kerry Hoxie, Jay’s mother, told the crowd. “You make such a difference for everyone and you deserve a lot of respect and applause.”

The four other social workers nominated for the award were:

• Jahninia Tarango, who helped develop an app for the Point in Time homeless count and volunteers with her church

• Danielle Deluca, a volunteer in schools and organizer of food and school supply drives

• Christina Alaniz, who travels to Tijuana to volunteer in orphanages and collects food and toys through her church

• Neda Rivera, who works with Chaldean refugees in the East region, breaking down language, resource and cultural barriers by working with non-profits that serve that community

Betty Orozco and Robbie Robertson were also recognized from the CWS foster care eligibility section.

Several County leaders were on hand to salute social workers at the event held at the Scottish Rite Center.

“I believe our social workers are our angels on earth,” said Dave Roberts, vice chairman, San Diego County Board of Supervisors. “You all are doing the work that needs to be done.

“What you see day-in and day-out and the decisions you make affects our kids for the rest of their lives.”

Chief Administrative Officer Helen Robbins-Meyer shared her appreciation of the work social workers do after she spent time with several of them on the job over the past two years.

“Unless you are a social worker out there doing that (job), you have no idea what it’s like,” she said. “I respect you, I admire you, and you’re doing it right.

“I need to applaud all of you for your efforts. It’s amazing.”

Motivational speaker Derek Clark was the keynote speaker and told his story of overcoming a horrific childhood to become a successful businessman, trainer and author of six books. He’s also known as the “Rapping Dad” and has racked up more than a million views of his videos online.

Clark, who was born at Grossmont Hospital, said he would not be where he is today without the efforts of one special social worker who fought for him after he was abandoned at a psychiatric hospital by his mother and stepfather at the age of 5.

“I know social workers have a purpose,” said Clark. “You’ve got that calling and that passion in your hearts.

“You want to save the kids of this world; you want to save the children. Social workers saved my life.”

Jay Hoxie Award finalists and officials: Front row: Barbara Jimenez, south and central regions general manager; Danielle Deluca, finalist; Christina Alaniz, finalist; Stephanie Bailey, Jay Hoxie Award winner; Neda Rivera, finalist; Dr. Kerry Hoxie; Dave Roberts, County Board of Supervisors vice chairman. Back row: Chuck Matthews, north regions general manager; Marie Mercadel-Brown, East region general manager; Jahninia Tarango, finalist; and Debra Zanders-Willis, CWS director.

Betty Orozco, left, and Robbie Robertson from the CWS foster care eligibility section were honored at the appreciation event.

Derek Clark, known as the "Rapping Dad," took the crowd on a journey from his tortured youth to his successful adult life as a motivational speaker, businessman and author.

Imagine That: 5 Ideas That Could Improve Your Work

The County’s Information Technology Innovation Day, presented by the Technology Office, HP and AT&T, was held last week at the County Operations Center. The event was started in 2012 as a way to collaborate with employees and brainstorm tech ideas to increase work efficiency and improve customer service.

If you missed out on the innovative fun, don’t worry. We’ve got five ideas from the day that will inspire and, hopefully, spark more ideas.

1. Sprout

Who can benefit from it: Anyone, but Sprout is especially useful for departments that have marketing or communication needs, departments that share and edit multiple documents and departments that share evidence and artifacts.

What it does: The real question is, what can’t it do? Sprout offers up dual interactive screens (a touchscreen monitor and a touch mat) that allow you to seamlessly collaborate with other Sprout users. It’s a bit like the interactivity of Lync, but with a whole lot more tools. You can scan and edit items, collectively work with other groups on the same document and watch edits in real-time – heck, you can even play the piano on it!

Why it’s useful: Bye-bye paper! All digital scanning means less paper waste. It also allows a unified workflow. Bonus: It’s easy enough that kids can use it.

2. Idea Portal

Who can benefit from it: Anyone with an idea

What it does: Offers a digital platform for everyone to contribute ideas on a topic. A message board function allows you to talk out your ideas with others, fine-tune them and collaborate with colleagues. In the example presented, the County Technology Office could run an idea portal for possible IT improvements. Allows you to easily upload web clippings, pics and docs for everyone to view.

Why it’s useful: Your ideas go straight to the source to be considered as a possible new capability. Bonus: it helps connect interdepartmental goals and identify common needs across the County. Everyone has one forum in which to share and collaborate.

3. IT Vending Machine

Who can benefit from it: County employees who require immediate access to IT hardware

What it does: Dispenses much-needed, high-demand office technology supplies instantly. It can be customized to be filled with whatever your location uses most often and can efficiently control and track IT supplies. Basically, it’s a vending machine full of tech goodies (e.g. flash drives, wireless mice, keyboards, headsets, etc.) Bonus: Can be controlled with badge access and/or P-card.

Why it’s useful: Provides 24/7 access for needed supplies (no more waiting three days for your order!) and offers up controlled dispensing. Complete customization caters to employees, departments and/or locations. 

4. WatchDox Document Security

Who can benefit from it: Anyone who needs to share documents

What it does: Love Dropbox? Can’t get enough of GoogleDocs? WatchDox takes the same concept from those private company offerings and adds security to it, enabling County employees to safely access, share and collaborate on sensitive information from any device (phone, tablet, computer) and with any user (other County employees or outside contacts). Bonus: You can edit documents on devices that don’t have Word (like your Apple iPad).

Why it’s useful: Synchronizes documents across PC and mobile devices so that all docs are updated, no matter where they live. With customizable security, you can have various folders with various permissions (Read-only, CoSD-only; download protocol, etc.). WatchDox offers up extra security and control that other doc-sharing systems can’t.

5. OMEGA (Online Mobile Engagement App)

Who can benefit from it: Our customers

What it does: Provides helpful information to people visiting County facilities. Sensors located at County buildings can, essentially, create an alert on smartphones that have a County app downloaded on it. Once the user comes within a certain range of the sensor, they’ll receive a push notification on their smartphone that offers up guidance based on their location: a map of the County facility they’re entering, services located in that building or other tips for their visit.

Why it’s useful: Adds to customer service. We’re holding the hands of our customers without smothering them. Bonus: The idea uses technology already in play – Bluetooth.

Got questions or crave more? Contact HPCoSDInnovate@hp.com and keep being innovative!

And heads-up to mark your calendars for June 3, 2015, as a similar event will be hosted by the CTO, Adobe, EMC and HP.  This day will focus on business solutions and benefits of using the County’s existing enterprise document processing platform. You will have an opportunity to hear first-hand how several County departments have improved productivity and efficiency by processing documents using high-speed scanning, electronic forms, workflow and central content management. EMC and Adobe will present future plans of the products we currently use. This will be a day that you won’t want to miss! 

Ethics Awareness Fair

Thanks to everyone who turned out for the Ethics Awareness Fair at the COC. 

We Are the Life of the Party

You could be at a party. Or maybe an event for your kids. Or on social media. Or any place where you’re meeting new people.

Someone says, “Hi! It’s nice to meet you, what do you do?”

You say proudly, “I work for the County of San Diego!”

Maybe there’s a slightly blank look, maybe a pause. Then you might hear, “Oh, how do you like the mayor?” (Actually, that’s the one I always get.) Or, “Oh, uh, yeah, I, uh, don’t live in the county.”

(Ahem… throat clearing… awkward silence.)

I know. It’s not their fault. We can be confusing for outsiders.

They’re not talking geography. They’re talking services, government.

But we know — OF COURSE they live in the County! And we’re talking services. They just need someone to tell them about it!

The fact is it’s practically impossible to live in our region and not be protected and served by us. Just take any normal day as an example. If you get up and drive to work and stop to get gas, you’ll see a County seal on the pump. County inspectors are the ones who make sure that pump dispenses the full gallon you’re buying — no matter where you are, in a city or one of our beautiful unincorporated communities.

Maybe you stop at the store to pick up something to eat for lunch. Well, County inspectors are the ones who make sure the price scanners at the checkout counter are charging you accurately and that the deli is clean and safe.

Maybe you decide to head to a restaurant for lunch instead. That’s right. It’s the County that regularly inspects the 12,000-plus restaurants and food facilities countywide to make sure they’re meeting state health and sanitation guidelines and earning the “A” food grade they need to have. (Oh, and you can check those grades online before you head to the restaurant!)

Maybe it’s not a work day. You decide to head out to one of our world famous beaches. And it’s us again! The County monitors beach-water quality at the 80-plus beaches in our region and warns the public when there are pollution problems. (And, if you’re heading to a public pool, we inspect those to make sure they’re safe too!)

Maybe you just want to read a good book or magazine? Who needs Barnes and Noble? I think there are only like 12 of those countywide — we have 33 branch libraries! And you can browse their stacks right online!

But all of this is just a small slice of the services that we provide that serve almost everyone in our region.

We provide billions of dollars of health and social services for the region. We conduct all the elections — federal, state, local — held in San Diego County. Sheriff’s deputies not only patrol our unincorporated areas, they serve as law enforcement for nine of the 18 cities! (We also run the jails — in case that party gets a little rowdy! ☺)

We also manage probation services regionwide, prosecute crimes through the District Attorney’s Office and help people who cannot afford court representation to defend themselves through the Public Defender’s office.

We provide vector control for the entire region to make sure mosquitoes and other animals that transmit diseases to people are monitored and controlled. We also provide animal control services to the unincorporated areas and in six of the 18 cities.

In addition, the state recognizes us as the region’s disaster-response coordinator when large emergencies strike. We make sure that businesses, whether they’re in cities or the unincorporated areas, don’t pollute the air or mismanage hazardous waste.

We manage the program that protects foster kids throughout the region. We handle adoptions and child support.

And again, there’s so much more, it’s really hard to name it all: public health, disease surveillance, parks, even weddings!

So, the next time you hear that, “uhh, yeah, I don’t live in the County.”

Just remember, of course they do!

There doesn’t have to be any awkward pause. Just tell them the part about the gas stations, the stores, the beaches, the restaurants — all that stuff! And you can tell them we’re the government known by #StrongReserves, #AAABondRating and #BestEmployeesEver!

Heck, you’ll be the life of the party! 

Pop Quiz: How Financially Literate Are You?

What do you know about County finances? Take the three-question quiz below to find out. Don’t worry; we let you guess a second time. Did you get one answer correct? Two? Or all three?

The questions were part of a longer informal quiz given at a County Financial Literacy Training held last week at the County Operations Center.

The course was designed for County employees at every level of the organization to gain a better understanding of how public finance is conducted. The curriculum covered the County’s financial planning process, terms and policies, and how to read useful reports and graphs.

Andrew Pease, Finance Director for the Health and Human Services Agency, called the class “financial literacy for non-financial folks.” Participants from each of the five groups attended the engaging training session.

“It’s an opportunity to get an overview. It’s an opportunity to ask questions,” Pease said. “And it’s an opportunity to learn and contribute.”

The Finance and General Government Group plans to hold the Financial Literacy Workshop quarterly. Keep your eyes open for an email announcing that registration is open. Anyone interested in a basic knowledge of financial planning or interest in working in public finance will benefit from the short session.

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Employee Wild About PCT

Jeff Johnson, HHSA, has been hiking segments of the PCT for 16 years.

When he’s at work, he’s known as Jeffrey Johnson, senior epidemiologist. But in the hiking world, where everyone gets a trail name, he goes by Compass.

“I’ve always got the map. I know exactly what direction we need to go in,” said the avid hiker whose life goal is to blaze the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail, or the “PCT.”

He’s completed a portion of that goal already. Unlike “thru-hikers,” who typically start right at the U.S.-Mexican border and take four to five months to hike continuously up to Canada, Johnson is taking a different approach to the ambitious trek.

“I’ve been at it for 16 years… It’s a life-long goal,” Johnson said of the now-popular trail, thanks to the book and film Wild. “I first wanted to achieve it as fast as I could, but I knew I needed to pace myself and just enjoy the hiking.”

And so that’s what he does. Johnson takes any opportunity he can to complete new segments of the trail. He started at the southernmost end of the trail, in Campo, 16 years ago with a quick, one-mile hike to see how the terrain was. Then, a couple weeks later, he hiked 13 miles and ended at Lake Morena County Park. 

Johnson stands at the PCT entrance in Campo with his son 16 years ago.

Johnson usually drives out to his starting point and has a friend pick him up at the end of his journey and drive him back to his car. But as the segments he’s trekking get further and further away from home, it’s a little trickier finding time to hike and someone to who can go with him to drive him back to his starting point, which is sometimes 50-70 miles away.

“About 5 years into it, I was out by Warner Springs,” Johnson said. “It was harder to get out there and I needed someone to go with me and pick me up.”

The red lines indicate, roughly, the parts of the trail Johnson has trekked.

Still, Johnson said that’s just part of the fun. He’s hiked from Campo on up to Big Bear and parts throughout the Sierra Nevada near Yosemite. The San Diego native said he’s hiked about 350 miles of the PCT so far, sometimes alone, other times with his sons or other hikers on the trail.

The most challenging thing about Johnson’s stretches on the PCT hasn’t been the physical exertion or even the snow he hit in San Jacinto. It’s water – a rare commodity along the desert parts of the trail. 

“There’s a section by Tehachapi that’s really dry and hot. There’s just no water. It’s extreme,” Johnson said. “I work for public health, so it’s especially important I make sure I’m purifying water I get from a stream. So I carry a water filter that removes the bacteria.”

Because he’s not constantly on the trail, the epidemiologist keeps in shape by hiking around town – specifically County parks. 

“I’ve been able to really discover the backcountry of San Diego County,” Johnson said. “Once a year, I do the El Capitan Preserve or Volcan Mountain – they’re pretty aggressive. I love Oak Oasis Preserve – it’s quick and I can do it in about two hours and get some training in.”

Johnson plans to continue his climb up the PCT this year toward the end of April, starting where he left off in Big Bear. It will be a nine-mile journey, uphill the whole way. His other life goal is to climb the highest point in each state. He’s checked off eight of the 50 so far, California included. He plans to reach the highest points in Maryland and Virginia later this year.

“Part of my job here is ‘Live Well San Diego’ – [hiking] has helped me keep in good health, it’s helped keep me mobile and active,” Johnson said. “Keep hiking on.” Johnson keeps in shape by hiking various County trails and parks. Here, he stands on top of Stelzer Peak at Louis Stelzer County Park.

Johnson stops and takes pictures of the wild poppies on the PCT near Warner Springs - one of his favorite parts of the trail so far.

Johnson hit snow on a stretch of the trail near San Jacinto.

A Potluck of Cultures Celebrates Black History Month

The purpose was to celebrate Black History Month, but nearly 150 HHSA employees enjoyed food, fellowship and fun from many cultures at the first annual A Taste of Black Heritage event held last week in El Cajon.

East Region Child Welfare Services and Aging & Independence Services employees planned the celebration as an inclusive event that would highlight African-American culture while embracing the cultures of fellow employees.

“A team of African-American social workers planned the menu and contributed to making dishes,” said Lillian Asoera, protective services program manager for HHSA’s East Region. “There were also contributions from ethnic dishes from Ethiopia, Kenya and the Caribbean.

“Co-workers were encouraged to bring a dish that would normally be served in their own homes to embrace diversity.”

Employees dined on chicken, greens, sweet potatoes, cornbread, macaroni and cheese, and several desserts like sweet potato pie and peach cobbler. Some of the other dishes contributed included Asian lettuce wraps and Swedish cookies.

Jemison Benita, protective services supervisor, entertained event goers with music and everyone participated in a sing-along. The celebration also highlighted black history through the years during a presentation with inspirational quotes and photos.

New ERG Launches with Waterfront Party

The County's newest Employee Resource Group (ERG), the Emerging Workforce Association (EWA) held its launch party on Feb. 27 at the Waterfront Park, with guest speakers CAO Helen Robbins-Meyer, Human Resources Director Susan Brazeau and Office of Ethics and Compliance Director Joe Cordero.

Check out some scenes from the event below.

Interested in joining the EWA? You can fill out a membership form online.

Let’s Get Ethical!

With St. Patrick’s and Cesar Chavez days this month, we don’t want you to forget that it is also Ethics Awareness Month.

Joe Cordero, Director of the County’s Office of Ethics and Compliance (OEC), said he hopes employees show their support for this fundamental value by taking the time to participate in some of the educational activities planned for March.

“Let’s reaffirm our commitment to a high standard of ethics—let’s make it our personal cause this month and every month. After all, doing no harm, treating others appropriately and doing the right thing is important all-year round,” said Cordero.

An Ethics Awareness Month Information Fair will be held noon to 2 p.m., March 10 in the plaza area outside the Commons at the County Operations Center. There will be music, prizes, free goodies, information about County departments and other resources available for employees. More than 20 exhibitors will be present. Some of the participating departments include Animal Services, the Department of Human Resources’ Wellness Division and Veterans Outreach Program, and the County Library. Representatives from the County’s Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) as well as representative from the County’s Diversity and Inclusion Task Force will also be present providing information.

If you bring proof of completing the online Ethics 101 training, you’ll be entered into a raffle.

Then later in the month, former Chief Administrative Officer Walt Ekard returns to speak about public service and ethics in a talk titled “Character is King.” That will be at 12 noon, March 18 in the COC Chambers.

If you cannot make it to the COC events, there’s still an opportunity to get in on the action! Employees can participate in the following ways:

• Take the Ethics 101 online training. Head over to LMS and search for “Ethics 101.” The video is just 8 minutes long.

• Request that OEC conduct an on-site ethics training or speak at your March all-hands department meeting.

• Sign up your department for an information table at the Ethics Awareness Info Fair in March at the COC.

• Check out the "Ethics In-a-Box” training resources for managers/supervisors.

If you have a question about what is ethical in the meanwhile, don’t wait to get answers. The first place employees can turn if they have a concern about possible unethical, illegal or unsafe activity is their department’s chain of command.

If an employee isn’t comfortable going to a supervisor or other manager, or if their concern relates to a supervisor or manager, they can call OEC or the County’s Ethics Hotline at (866) 549-0004. The hotline is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week and is operated by a third party. So employees can report concerns anonymously. Employees can also report concerns online.

Get pumped for Ethics Awareness Month with this short video parody from “The Office.”

Happy Ethics Awareness Month!