Executive proclamation for 2021 Latinx/Hispanic Heritage Month and events
King County Executive Dow Constantine has proclaimed the month beginning Sept. 15 “Latinx/Hispanic Heritage Month” in King County. View the official proclamation here.
National Latinx and Hispanic Heritage Month is observed Sept. 15-Oct. 15 in the United States, Canada, and Latin America. This month is an opportunity to recognize and celebrate the long, important presence and contributions of Hispanic and Latino and Latina (Latinx) Americans. More than 62 million people of Latinx ancestry live in the United States, with almost 220,000 calling King County home.
To commemorate the celebration, the King County Latinx Affinity Group (KCLx) in collaboration with Sound Transit Latinx in Transportation and Seattle Department of Transportation Latinx Caucus for Latinx/Hispanic Heritage Month has provided a list of events. It includes a few public community events. For more information, view the detailed list here.
Upcoming 2021 Latinx/Hispanic Heritage Month events
“What does LATINX mean to you?” Art Contest
Sept. 15 – Oct. 15
To kickoff Latinx/Hispanic Heritage Month, KCLx is launching this contest event to showcase your unique interpretations of Latinx/o, Chicanx/o, and Hispanic identity. We all share common stories (culture, heritage, traditions, etc.) but how is your story read? Submit your art pieces to Diego Galvan at diego.galvan@kingcounty.gov. Art contest submissions will be accepted from Sept. 15-Oct. 8, and will be placed on display in the virtual KCLx Art Gallery. The top 3 submissions/winners, selected by the KCLx Leadership Committee, will be announced on Oct. 15, and win a gift card prize. See flyer for more details. This showcase is organized by King County. Contact: Diego Galvan, diego.galvan@kingcounty.gov or Margarita Aguado, maguado@kingcounty.gov
Sea Mar Virtual Fiestas Patrias
Friday, Sept. 18 at noon
Check out the digital premiere of Sea Mar’s 2021 Celebration Video with presentations from Chile, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru, and Chicano Culture. Hosted by Sea Mar Community Health Centers.
Filantropía para la Justicia Social – Social Justice Giving
Wednesday, Sept. 22 from 6-8 p.m.
Join the Latino Community Fund and Social Justice Fund for an interactive, cross-class workshop held in Spanish for people who identify as Black, Indigenous, people of color and/or immigrant and refugee. They will dive into how many of us already give, what strategic social justice giving is, and outline a framework that uncovers how our communities have and continue to resource ourselves. Hosted by the Latino Community Fund and Social Justice Fund. Register here.
A Discussion with Hispanic Women Leaders
Thursday, Sept. 23 from 5-6:15 p.m.
Please join the Center for Women and Democracy (CWD) for a conversation on how to harness the power of women across Washington State to create a just and equal future for all women. For the September event they will discuss the needs and concerns of Hispanic women and how their issues impact us all. Hosted by CWD. Register here.
Virtual Tour: Sea Mar Museum of Chicano/a Latino/a Culture
Thursday, Sept. 30 from noon to 1 p.m.
Celebrate Latinx Heritage Month with the KCLx Affinity Group by joining us for a virtual tour of the Sea Mar Museum of Chicano/a/Latino/a Culture. Opened in October 2019 in the South Park neighborhood of Seattle, the museum showcases the rich history of Chicano/as and Latino/as from the 1940s to present time. Dr. Jerry Garcia, Vice President of Educational Services for Sea Mar, will lead the tour. Hosted by King County. Contact: Margarita Aguado maguado@kingcounty.gov or Sabrina Torres, satorres@kingcounty.gov. Join via Zoom. Use passcode: 883797.
KCLx Cafecito
Monday, Oct. 4 from noon to 1 p.m.
King County employees who self-identify as Latinx, please join us for our bi-monthly virtual cafecitos! These casual meetings are meant to be a time to catch up with or get to know each other, share some virtual café y pan dulce, and have a little break during our hectic workdays. Contact Margarita Aguado or Sabrina Torres to receive the calendar series hold. Hosted by King County. Contact: Margarita Aguado, maguado@kingcounty.gov or Sabrina Torres, satorres@kingcounty.gov.
Q3 POCA/ERG Meeting hosted by Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) Latinx Caucus
Tuesday, Oct. 5 from noon to 1:30 p.m.
As part of Hispanic Month celebration (Sept/Oct), Latinx caucus will be hosting the Q3 meeting for People of Color Advancement (POCA)/employee resource group (ERG). This event includes guest speaker, Barbie-Danielle DeCarlo and a Jeopardy game! Hosted by SDOT. Contact: Lorena Ware, Lorena.Ware@seattle.gov.
La Importancia de los Programas de Acceso al Lenguaje y el Bilingüismo
Thursday, Oct. 7 from noon to 1:30 p.m.
Join KCLx and the King County’s Department of Public Health for this interactive informational about our COVID-19 Language Access Team. This event will be an opportunity to have a relevant conversation about the importance of language access equity and the celebration of bilingualism in the communities we serve. Hosted by King County.
Contact: Margarita Aguado, maguado@kingcounty.gov or Sabrina Torres, satorres@kingcounty.gov.
For more events, please visit the KCLx website at www.kingcounty.gov/latinx.
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Get a flu shot this fall
Dear King County Employee, In the past year, with so many people staying home, social distancing, and masking up, we saw very little influenza (i.e., flu) circulating. Because of this, some experts believe that when influenza does return, the season could be a severe one. Although we can’t predict with certainty when the flu will return or how severe it will be, it’s especially important to be prepared at this time. Flu activity is low now in King County, but it’s important to be protected before it starts to spread in our area to give your body time to build immunity. The Centers for Disease Control recommends that everyone six months and older get a flu shot every year with rare exceptions. Today I am asking you to get yourself and those living in your household vaccinated by the end of October.
Why flu vaccination is so important
For young children, older adults, pregnant people, people with conditions that compromise their immune systems, and even healthy people, a flu vaccine can be lifesaving.
Flu vaccination prevents millions of flu illnesses and medical visits, tens of thousands of flu hospitalizations and thousands of deaths from flu in the United States each season.
Hospitals in King County are nearly full as the highly contagious Delta variant continues to spread. We need to do everything we can to prevent additional burden on the already strained local healthcare system. Flu vaccines can help prevent serious illnesses, hospitalizations, and death from influenza infection.
In addition, flu and COVID-19 share many symptoms and it will be complicated to distinguish between the two. Get your flu shot to prevent flu illnesses that may be confused with COVID-19 and result in unnecessary testing, isolation, or quarantine.
Wearing a face mask, physical distancing, hand hygiene, and respiratory etiquette will also help to prevent spread of the flu and other respiratory viruses, including COVID-19.
Getting a flu shot is easy
The county makes it free for employees and anyone covered by your benefits to get a flu shot at one of our onsite clinics, or at your doctor’s office or local pharmacy. The Balanced You team is again organizing onsite flu shot clinics for those workers onsite. The schedule and more information about on-site flu clinics is here. If you are working from home, avoid a commute to a worksite by getting vaccinated at your physician’s office or local pharmacy. Information for telecommuters seeking a flu shot is here.
If you haven’t already been vaccinated for COVID-19, this is a good opportunity to get vaccinated ahead of the October 18 deadline for all King County Executive branch employees. It is safe to get a flu shot in the same time frame as a COVID-19 vaccine. King County flu shot clinics are separate from COVID-19 vaccine clinics, so you will have to schedule them separately. View the remaining dates for COVID-19 vaccine clinics.
I want to reassure you of several things:
- The flu vaccine is safe – you will not get the flu from the vaccine.
- The flu vaccine is effective – it reduces your likelihood of getting the flu and is even more effective in reducing severe infections and hospitalizations.
- When you get a flu shot, you also help prevent flu from spreading to others, especially those who are high risk for serious illness because of their age or medical conditions.
- When you get a flu shot, you are helping to prevent additional burden on the already strained local healthcare system as it addresses the highly contagious Delta variant.
For those of you getting the flu shot onsite at work, the Balanced You team is working on cleaning and sanitation, physical distancing, and other protocols to ensure the experience is safe. On behalf of your partners in Public Health, we thank you for taking this action.
Jeff Duchin, MD
Health Officer, Public Health – Seattle & King County
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Receiving a replacement vaccination card
To provide verification of vaccine status, employees need to show official documentation. If you have lost your vaccination card, there are several ways to receive a replacement card or official document:
- Look up your vaccination from Washington State Department of Health’s “My Immunization Registry” (MyIR). If you have registered, log in to MyIR to look up your vaccination record, and then print or take a screenshot or photo of the information. If you do not have an account, you can sign up for MyIR any time.
- Use the mobile version of WA state’s immunization registry, MyIRmobile to get a vaccination certificate. MyIRmobile matches records based on name, birthday, phone, and email. If any of these fields are missing or incorrect you will be unable to match your record.
- If you received your vaccine at your health care provider, the provider’s office should be able to give you a copy of your record.
- You may go back to the site you were vaccinated and ask a clinic supervisor for a new card. They may be able to look you up and create a new card.
For more information about receiving a replacement card, and other frequently asked questions, visit www.kingcounty.gov/vaccine.
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Remaining dates for King County employee vaccination clinics
King County is hosting several COVID-19 vaccination clinics open to all employees and their families, with vaccinator partners Discovery Health and Pliable. All King County Executive branch employees must be fully vaccinated by Oct. 18, 2021. To meet this requirement, employees must receive their second shot of a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or single shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine by Monday, Oct. 4, 2021, and provide verified proof of vaccination as soon as you receive your final vaccination.
All three vaccines (Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson) will be available at the clinics listed below. If you plan to receive your second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine at one of these clinics, be sure to bring your Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card with you.
Walk-ins are welcome, but pre-registration is strongly encouraged to save time. For the Discovery Health clinics, registration will also help you secure your preferred vaccine type.
- Wednesday, Sept. 29, 2021 from 1 to 4 p.m., Cedar Hills Regional Landfill, 16645 228th Ave SE in Maple Valley. Register here with Pliable.
- Thursday, Sept 30, 2021 from 6-9 a.m., Regional Communications and Emergency Coordination Center, 3511 NE 2nd St. in Renton. Register here with Pliable.
- Thursday, Sept 30, 2021 from 1-4 p.m., Roads Division Renton Maintenance Facility, behind building “A” at 155 Monroe Ave NE in Renton. Register here with Pliable.
- Saturday, October 2, 2021 from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., Metro’s Safety and Training building at 11911 E Marginal Way S. in Tukwila. Register with Discovery Health by your preferred vaccine type:: Pfizer, Moderna, and J&J.
If you are unable to attend the above clinics, you can find alternative locations for getting vaccinated at vaccinelocator.doh.wa.gov and kingcounty.gov/vaccine.
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Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) is coming to AnyConnect VPN
King County is enabling MFA (Multi-Factor Authentication) technology as an additional layer of cyber security to the VPN (King County is enabling MFA (Multi-Factor Authentication) technology as an additional layer of cyber security to the VPN (Virtual Private Network) solution, AnyConnect. At this time, employees are only required to input their username and password to login to AnyConnect. Soon, employees will also experience an MFA challenge on the same device or phone number they use for Microsoft Office 365. If you do not currently utilize MFA for enhanced cyber security, do not worry. KCIT is working with senior leadership to get every employee scheduled soon.
Below is a series of screenshots to show you what the AnyConnect login process will look like moving forward.
1. Select your department and click Connect to start VPN connection. The “KingCountyVPN” option will remain available to facilitate the migration to MFA. It will function as it does today, until it is removed upon completion of the AnyConnect MFA implementation project.
2. Enter your King County username
3. Enter your King County password
4. You will see a notification, like below, notifying you that your second factor is being challenged. So check your Microsoft Authenticator App, phone number, or hard token fob you enrolled with.
5. Approve the MFA request, assuming you initiated the connection. Please note, your experience may look different depending what second factor you enrolled in. Remember, never approve an unexpected MFA challenge, it could be someone attempting to access your account.
For questions or assistance contact KCIT at https://helpdesk.kingcounty.gov or call 206-263-HELP (3-4357).
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2020 Innovation Award for Equity and Social Justice honorees
The King County Innovation Awards honor employees and teams whose projects, improvements, and ingenuity deliver exceptional, measurable results.
This year’s Equity and Social Justice Award recipient is the Department of Public Health – Seattle & King County’s Community Mitigation and Recovery Team (CMR). These honorees consider challenges within their delivery of services to King County residents, and developed solutions that address important needs. They met each challenge in a creative and forward-thinking manner that reflects our True North values.
The pandemic disproportionately affected communities that have been historically underserved. To mitigate the elevated risk of COVID-19 exposure and socio-economic fallout, Public Health – Seattle and King County created a team to support vulnerable populations.
Anita Whitfield, Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer, presented the award, recognizing approximately 50 staff members, representing Public Health, redeployments from other departments, and community partners, who joined together to focus on supporting the community during these unprecedented times.
“The CRM developed an accountability tool to track County progress in implementing community-led COVID-19 strategies and advancing anti-racist policy and system changes,” Whitfield explained. “The tool was then made available to community members, so that they too can track when the County fully adopted, partially adopted, or did not adopt their advice.”
Watch the award presentation video to learn how the team joined with community partners to implement COVID-19 strategies and advance anti-racist policy and system changes. Click here to see the project team members.
Executive’s Performance Excellence Awards series
The Innovation Awards are part of the Executive’s Performance Excellence Awards series, honoring employees and workgroups at King County for their exceptional contributions to performance, leadership, and innovation.
“As we build a best-run government at King County, these awards recognize individuals and teams who have gone above and beyond to look at how they can do things differently to better serve our customers and employees,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine.
Learn more about the King County Performance Excellence Awards.
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Using the online Security Incident Report form and staying safe at work
Every King County employee should feel safe and secure when at work. To achieve this, we remind you to report any threatening behavior or non-emergency incidents for follow-up to the FMD Security Unit using the online Security Incident Report form. You can report incidents that happen at work or on your commute. Also notify your supervisor, manager, and/or director as soon as you can.
Additionally, if you see anything or anyone that looks unusual or out of place, please call Facilities Management Division (FMD) Security at 206-296-5000. If it’s an emergency, call 9-1-1 first, then call FMD Security when you are able.
The Security Incident Report form is accessible from the www.kingcounty.gov/Employees webpage within the My Tools dropdown menu, and from the bottom of the Employee Newsletter.
For additional guidance we have created a list of safety tips online and safety tip videos using information from Seattle Police Department, designed to help you enhance your personal safety and avoid potential trouble:
Safety Tip #1 | Safety Tip #2 | Safety Tip #3 | Safety Tip #4 | Safety Tip #5
Remember, if you choose to avoid using surface streets you can use the tunnel from the Goat Hill Garage to access the Chinook Building, Administration Building, and Courthouse. If you feel unsafe about walking to your vehicle or to other transportation, you may call the 24-hour Emergency Dispatch Center at 206-296-5000 and ask that a Security Officer accompany you.
For more information about staying safe at work and to file an online Security Incident Report visit www.kingcounty.gov/EmployeeSafety.
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2020 Innovation Award for People honorees
The King County Innovation Awards seek to honor employees and teams whose projects, improvements, and ingenuity deliver exceptional, measurable results. These honorees have considered challenges within their delivery of services to King County residents, and developed solutions that address an important need. These honorees met each challenge in a creative and forward-thinking manner that reflects our True North values.
This year’s People Innovation Award recipient is the Department of Human Resource’s Mental Health Initiative.
“With the twin public health crises of COVID-19 and racism, it became imperative that we were taking care of not only the physical health of our employees, but their mental health as well,” shared Whitney Abrams, Chief People Officer of King County.
After conducting employee listening sessions, the team developed a multi-pronged, culturally responsive approach. Among other things, this included trainings to recognize signs of mental health and distress, support groups for frontline and first responders, and advocating with our health plans to diversify their mental health providers and make that transparent to employees.
“The efforts were recognized nationally by Mental Health America with a Platinum designation – its highest honor,” Abrams added, “Congratulations to the DHR Team for their extraordinary work and firm commitment to take care of the people who are making King County a welcoming community where every person can thrive.”
Due to the pandemic, the Executive and other leaders at King County congratulated the 2020 honorees by video.
Congratulations to the Project Team: Brooke Bascom, Heather Steffensen, Janna Wilson, Jena Scott, Karla Clark, Mary Norman, Megan Jourdan, Michele Ritala, and Shawna Johnson.
Executive’s Performance Excellence Awards series
The Innovation Awards are part of the Executive’s Performance Excellence Awards series, honoring employees and workgroups at King County for their exceptional contributions to performance, leadership, and innovation.
“As we build a best-run government at King County, these awards recognize individuals and teams who have gone above and beyond to look at how they can do things differently to better serve our customers and employees,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine.
Learn more about the King County Performance Excellence Awards.
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The CFJC Youth Action Team is now accepting applications
The Children and Family Justice Center (CFJC) Youth Action Team is an opportunity for young people ages 14 thru 18, from a variety of backgrounds, to come together to find and share their voices as it relates to community resources, planning, and engagement.
Who can apply?
- King county youth, ages 14 thru 18. No previous experience needed to be a member, only a willingness to get involved.
- Must possess a passion for taking an active approach to create a united community within King County.
- The Youth Action Team meets at the Child & Family Justice Center at 1211 E. Alder Street in Seattle or via Zoom. Special events will be held within the King County area.
- Meetings will be held once or twice per month on a weekday that works best for the group.
- Upon completion of your commitment, each participant will receive an incentive.
How to apply: To be considered for the Youth Action Team, applicants must complete and submit the online application form.
The Youth Action Team has four main parts:
- Youth voice: Discuss solutions to community issues impacting youth and formulate ideas to address current issues.
- Gain skills and knowledge: Participate in monthly meetings, gain knowledge around civic engagement, plan effective outreach campaigns, fundraising, grant writing and leadership skills.
- Organize and facilitate community engagement events: Host community conversation events about important topics in our community and participate in planning for an expanding community resource center.
- Learn about juvenile justice operations and system change: Partner with Juvenile Court staff, the Prosecuting Attorney’s, Defense Attorney’s, and Judges’ offices to learn about how superior courts operate and the decision-making processes associated with community services and needs. Gain connections with Juvenile Court Services Leadership to help in future endeavors and opportunities.
If you have any questions or just want to learn more about the Youth Action Team, please contact Robert Gant at rgant@kingcounty.gov or 206-477-0041. Please feel free to share this with young people who may be interested.
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How do COVID-19 vaccines work?
COVID-19 vaccines help our bodies develop immunity to the virus that causes COVID-19 without us having to get the illness. When you get the vaccine, your immune system makes antibodies and other infection-fighting cells that protect you in case you are infected with the virus.
How do the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines work?
Vaccines that have been authorized from Pfizer and Moderna are mRNA vaccines. mRNA vaccine technology has been studied and worked with for decades.
There is no virus in the mRNA vaccines, so you cannot get a COVID-19 infection from the vaccine. Instead, mRNA vaccines give our cells instructions to make a harmless protein—one that looks just like an important protein on the COVID-19 virus. When your cells make that protein, your body creates a strong immune response and antibodies to protect against COVID-19. Your body learns how to protect you from getting infected without exposure to the virus.
After the mRNA teaches our cells to protect against COVID-19, our body’s enzymes quickly break down and eliminate the mRNA. mRNA does not get into the nucleus of our cells, DNA, or genetic material.
Although these are the first mRNA vaccines to be authorized for use, mRNA technology has been studied for more than 30 years. More information about how mRNA vaccines work can be found on the CDC’s website.
How does the Johnson & Johnson vaccine work?
The Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine uses a harmless form of the common cold virus (not the coronavirus) that’s been modified so that it can’t make you sick. This harmless virus delivers instructions to teach our cells to make a protein found on the surface of the coronavirus. When your cells make that protein, your body creates a strong immune response to protect against COVID-19. Your body learns how to protect you from getting infected with COVID-19 without exposure to the actual coronavirus.
This type of vaccine cannot infect you with COVID-19 or with the harmless common cold virus used to deliver the instructions. The vaccine does not get into or change the nucleus of our cells, DNA, or genetic material.
Scientists began creating viral vectors in the 1970s. For decades, hundreds of scientific studies of viral vector vaccines have been done around the world. They have been used against other infectious diseases like Ebola, Zika, flu, and HIV.
Women younger than 50 years old should be aware of the risk of a very rare but serious condition involving blood clots and low platelet counts. Other COVID-19 vaccines (Pfizer and Moderna) are available that do not have this risk.
If you haven’t already been vaccinated, you can find out where to get your vaccine and find answers to your questions at www.kingcounty.gov/vaccine.
Find out more in the Frequently Asked Questions about COVID-19 vaccine section of the Public Health – Seattle & King County website.
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