Get To Know VALOR Secretary Thomas Velasquez

The County has 10 great Employee Resource Groups (ERG). They are each led by a respective board who all demonstrate commitment and stewardship of its members to the various sectors of our community.

Get to know VALOR ERG Secretary Thomas Velasquez, a paralegal with County Counsel.

Q: How long have you worked for the County and what departments have you worked for? 

A: I am going on 20 years with the County. I’ve worked 16 yrs. at the District Attorney in various positions and coming up on 4 years with County Counsel.

Q: What do you do in your role/what are your job responsibilities? 

A: I am a paralegal; my job is to represent the County in litigation by managing cases as they move through the justice system from beginning to end. I work with clients to gather evidence, strategize on our litigation strategy, and bring cases to trial. I also work on designing and delivering trainings, and working with subject matter experts that provide training to our office.

Q: What’s your workplace superpower? 

A: My superpower is that I am super flexible and it comes from my time spent in the military. I can work on projects individually or work collaboratively with a team. I am very process and procedure driven, yet I can be flexible and change priorities at a moment’s notice. If I was a superhero, I would be Mr. Fantastic.

Q: Tell us a little bit about yourself outside of work. 

A: I am heavily into health and fitness. I love to CrossFit, ride my Peloton, and run. To exercise my mind, I like to read both fiction and non-fiction novels. I am also a huge computer gamer and I love reading stories and watching videos from my favorite fantasy universes such as Marvel, Star Wars and DC Comics with my family and friends.

Q: What are you passionate about? 

A: I am passionate about helping others improve, by providing training opportunities in a professional setting. I am passionate about leadership and providing leadership coaching to emerging leaders. I am also passionate about health and wellness.

Q. What is the best advice you’ve received from a mentor? 

A: Always believe in yourself and your abilities.

Q: What are some resources that you find useful and recommend to others?

A: I regularly watch presentations from TED. I find the material thought provoking and I am usually led to some good books to read.  I also would recommend checking out self-paced classes from Mindvalley. If there is a topic anyone is interested in learning about, Mindvalley may have a course on it. Plus, LinkedIn Learning has a ton of great courses. I’ve taken many of them myself.

Q: Tell us about your ERG.

A: VALOR is an ERG to provide networking opportunities for county employees who are veterans, or people connected to veterans either through family and/or friends, however anyone can join our ERG.

Q: Why are ERGs important? 

A: ERGs are important as they provide a space to connect to other County employees that share similar interests. On top of the networking opportunities, ERGs also provide County employees access to training, and career growth opportunities.

Q: What is your ERG looking forward to this year? 

A: We are looking forward to engaging with members and connecting with new members at in-person events.

 Also Read:

Get To Know MEERG President Mehdi Khalili

Get To Know EWA Board Member Diana Eid-Chammas

Get To Know SDCLA Secretary Alex Talaro

Get To Know LGBTQ&A ERG Board Member Ryan Trabuco

Get To Know APACE Vice President Annamarie Hernandez

Get To Know PISCE Treasurer Isobel Kinsang

 Get To Know AAACE Secretary Nikki Horton

Get to Know DiverseAbility ERG Secretary Valerie Prado

Get to Know CSDFEA Vice President Kathleen Mendoza

Get to Know INS President Maria Whitehorse

Rewind: Anti-hate Townhall for Employees

Watch the Rewind video here.

Did you miss the Anti-hate Townhall for employees on May 18? You can now watch the session focused on hate speech, recent hate incidents and how to remain resilient.

The virtual event was sponsored by the D&I Executive Council in partnership with the Asian Pacific Alliance of County Employees.

Speakers were Abigail Dillon with the District Attorney’s Office, Dante Dauz with the API Coalition, Charles Clark with the San Diego Union-Tribune, and Matthew Brown from the Anti-Defamation League.

Watch now.

Resources referenced in this session:

Reporting

• To report a hate crime in progress or an emergency, call 911

• For non-emergencies, call 858-565-5200

• Report a hate crime to the DA’s Office.

• The DA's Office can be contacted directly at hatecrimes@sdcda.org or call 619-515-8805.

Resources

• ADL: H.E.A.T. Map

• ADL: Hate on Display Hate Symbols Database

• ADL: Education Resources

• DA: Victim Services

• DA: Hate Crimes

• Sheriff: Hate Crimes and Hate Incidents

• Sheriff: Hate Crime Statistics

• UPAC: Website

• UPAC: Stop AAPI Hate & Violence Initiative

• UPAC: Neighborhood Enterprise Center

• UPAC: Alliance for Community Empowerment

• UT: Charles Clark Column

Get to Know DiverseAbility ERG Secretary Valerie Prado

The County has 10 great Employee Resource Groups (ERG). They are each led by a respective board who all demonstrate commitment and stewardship of its members to the various sectors of our community.

Get to know DiverseAbility ERG Secretary Valerie Prado, an administrative analyst with Behavioral Health Services.

Q: How long have you worked for the County and what departments have you worked for?

A: I’ve worked for the County for almost a year and a half now. I started off at the Document Processing Center, became an administrative secretary for Chief Darlene Beltran, and then promoted into my current role as an administrative analyst within Behavioral Health Services.

Q: What do you do in your role/what are your job responsibilities?

A: As an admin analyst on the contract support team, I assist in the coordination and facilitation of our monthly COR (contracting officer representative) meetings, support with the BHS procurement board letters, provide access to CAMs (a program used for contracts) and our SharePoint, and in general assist the admin analyst III with any project that comes our way.

Q: What’s your workplace superpower?

A: I believe my workplace superpower to be a mix of three things: my ability to connect with others, my commitment to building team spirit and my desire to see people succeed!

Q: Tell us a little bit about yourself outside of work.

A: Playing at parks and playgrounds was something I adored as kid and now that I have my own spunky toddler, I get to enjoy what San Diego has to offer in a new lens! San Diego has inclusive playgrounds with adaptive equipment that are ADA-accessible. It’s great to see that our parks welcome a large population of children and families who just want to have fun.

Q: What are you passionate about?

A: I am passionate about helping other people achieve success. It is one of the main reasons why I enjoy my job so much, I get to provide vital resources and training to all our CORS and Analysts while also looking for way to improve on delivery.

Q. What is the best advice you have received from a mentor?

A: Do not underestimate yourself.

Q: What are some resources that you find useful and recommend to others?

A: LMS is a treasure. The course on Emotional Intelligence improved how I communicate in the workplace and at home—I highly recommend this class.

If you can, sign up for UC Davis’ LEAD San Diego. An eye-opening course that my first supervisor pushed me to take and I’m grateful she did! The course supplemented the knowledge I had on my own Gallup Strengths, with the DiSC model. Since taking the course I feel that I can connect better with colleagues and people whose priorities and preferences differ from my own.

Q: Tell us about your ERG.

A: Our mission statement is to advance awareness and inclusion for people with disabilities, provide and promote professional development and leadership opportunities, and advocate for inclusiveness in and support of County initiatives.

Q: Why are ERGs important?

A: They help to create a better workplace for everyone as they strive to break down physical and mental barriers to inclusion, diversity and equity.

Q: What is your ERG looking forward to this year?

A: We recently planted trees at Dos Picos County Park, alongside EWA and CSDFEA. We are hoping we can collaborate on similar events soon. We have a virtual Lunch & Learn Series in the works, so stay tuned!

 Also Read:

Get To Know MEERG President Mehdi Khalili

Get To Know EWA Board Member Diana Eid-Chammas

Get To Know SDCLA Secretary Alex Talaro

Get To Know LGBTQ&A ERG Board Member Ryan Trabuco

Get To Know APACE Vice President Annamarie Hernandez

Get To Know PISCE Treasurer Isobel Kinsang

 Get To Know AAACE Secretary Nikki Horton

Get To Know VALOR Secretary Thomas Velasquez

Get to Know CSDFEA Vice President Kathleen Mendoza

Get to Know INS President Maria Whitehorse

Speaking Our Stories II

Join “Speaking Our Stories II” a virtual lunch and learn where four speakers, all County employees, will touch on trauma experienced. 

The event will be held on Teams from noon to 1 p.m. on June 9 and is a collaboration  between the Middle Eastern Employee Resource Group (MEERG), African American Association of County Employees (AAACE), Pacific Islander Society of County Employees (PISCE) and the County of San Diego Filipino-American Employee Association (CSDFEA),

The lunch and learn will be moderated by Andrew Strong, director of the Office of Equity and Racial Justice.

Speakers

·         Davinder Kaur with Probation, disownment survivor

·         Dr. Keisha Clark with HHSA, Hurricane Katrina survivor

·         Tiare Hamilton with HHSA, parent of a self-harm teenager survivor

·         Wildredo Perez with HHSA, domestic violence survivor

“Our trauma can affect our mental health, and by speaking about our stories, it serves the purpose to heal or to relate with one another as often what we have experienced has been experienced by others,” MEERG stated in the promotional flyer.

Join the lunch and learn.

See the flyer below.

Recognizing Neurofibromatosis Awareness.

The County Administration Center was lit blue and green Wednesday night in recognition of Neurofibromatosis Awareness.

Help Available to Manage Your Mental Well-being

The County is aware that recent violent incidents around the country are distressing to our employees.

We offer this reminder that the Employee Assistance Program is available to provide counseling and referral services to employees and family members. There is no cost, and consultations are confidential.

Professionally trained staff are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. They are a resource for any emotional wellness concerns you may have.

Call the EAP’s toll free number at 888-777-6665 or visit the EAP website. (Sheriff’s Department sworn staff have access to their EAP provider by contacting The Counseling Team International at 800-222-9691.)

You can also discuss concerns about your mental health with your primary care doctor, and mental health benefits are available through the County’s health care plans.   

Additionally, the County provides ongoing support for emotional well-being through the Employee Wellness Program. It offers a variety of classes and events, such as meditation, yoga, and lunch & learns, focused on promoting improved mental health.

The County encourages you to make full use of any of the resources you would find helpful.   

Know the Code: Conflicts of Interest

Know the Code is a monthly series highlighting different sections of the County of San Diego Code of Ethics.  The mission of the Office of Ethics and Compliance (OEC) is to assist in fulfilling the County’s commitment to the highest standards of ethics and compliance. 

By the Office of Ethics and Compliance

Every public servant, elected, appointed, or hired, enters into an agreement with the people: that as a public servant they will act ethically and seek to promote the public interest in the work that they do.

County employees should avoid becoming involved in activities that improperly influence their actions or job functions. This includes taking outside employment or engaging in activities where an employee’s judgment could be impaired in performing their duties for the County.

Reporting these and other potential conflicts having to do with relatives working in the same department or relationships with clients, contractors, and vendors must be disclosed so they do not compromise the County employee’s objectivity, accountability, or judgment.

If It’s Disclosed, It Can Be Managed!

Be Proactive – ask before acting. This is one of those times when it is better to ask for permission, than to have to explain what went wrong.

• Maybe you’re thinking about starting a business or doing some consulting because you’re an expert, or

• Maybe you have been invited to join a professional association or Board of Directors that may ask you to participate in fundraising for the organization, or

• Maybe you’re a newly assigned COR and you recognize a friend’s name in the list of vendors whose contracts you’ll be managing.

Ask before acting to make sure these activities and changes in circumstances do not create a conflict between your personal interests and professional responsibilities.  Remember if it’s disclosed, then it can be managed properly to avoid the conflict.

Check out the OEC webpage on InSite for information about upcoming Ethics & Compliance Program events, training, and resources including monthly “Know the Code” articles and micro-training videos.

If you have questions about Ethics & Compliance training or how to access the training and other Ethics & Compliance resources, please contact the OEC team at oec@sdcounty.ca.gov, 619-531-5174. 

HHSA staff may also contact the dedicated HHSA Agency Compliance team at compliance.hhsa@sdcounty.ca.gov, 619-338-2807.

Join AIS Book Discussion

Aging and Independence Services is holding a book discussion this month. The book selection is “Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning” by Cathy Park Hong. The virtual event will be held on Teams from noon to 1 p.m., May 31.

RVSP by emailing wilfredo.perez@sdcounty.ca.gov.

Book Description:

Poet and essayist Cathy Park Hong fearlessly and provocatively blends memoir, cultural criticism, and history to expose fresh truths about racialized consciousness in America. Part memoir and part cultural criticism, this collection is vulnerable, humorous, and provocative—and its relentless and riveting pursuit of vital questions around family and friendship, art and politics, identity and individuality, will change the way you think about our world.

Join on your computer or mobile app

Click here to join the meeting

Or call in (audio only)

+1 619-343-2539,,371238938#  

Phone Conference ID: 371 238 938#

Nearly 500 Employees Participate in 38th Annual Blood Drive

“Amazing!”

Gabe Gutierrez, Program Coordinator with the Office of Strategy and Innovation, giving blood at the San Diego Blood Bank.

That is how the San Diego Blood Bank described the number of pints received and employees who participated in the County’s 38th Annual Blood Drive.

A total of 492 employees donated blood at 22 different County locations in April; 111 of those were first-time donors. According to the blood bank, one pint of blood can save three lives, meaning your donations helped to save the lives of 1,476 people.

April is not the only time County employees can donate blood. You can do it year-round.

To keep track of the number of County employees donating blood and pints donated, the San Diego Blood Bank has set up a special appointment link and code to keep track of donations.

You should use this referral link when making an appointment: www.sandiegobloodbank.org/sandiegocounty.

On the day of your appointment, you should provide this code when you check in: SDCY.

There is a critical need for blood donations, and all blood types are welcome.

The blood drive supports the Live Well San Diego vision for a region that is building better health, living safely and thriving.