WaterWorks grants funding 69 community projects in 2020
Crossposted from Clean Water Stories
King County’s WaterWorks Grant Program is fulfilling its mission to invest in clean water and community partnerships. The King County Council recently passed an ordinance to approve the funding, moving work forward on projects around the region that will include restoring damaged habitat, building green infrastructure and providing youth education and internship opportunities.
Sixty nine local environmental projects that protect water quality, control pollution and build healthy communities will receive funding through King County’s WaterWorks Grant Program.
Read more from Clean Water Stories
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Resolved to stress less in 2020? Check out a mindfulness class!
Would you like to stress less this year? Give one of our popular mindfulness classes a try! Balanced You has partnered with Mindfulness Northwest to offer classes at county worksites, online, and in the community. Classes are available to King County employees free-of-charge, subject to availability. See the January to March 2020 calendar at the link below.
Mindfulness classes are one more way King County is Investing in YOU. Contact Balanced You with questions at BalancedYou@kingcounty.gov or 206-263-9626.
Read more from Balanced You
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Increase your financial wellness with My Secure Advantage. Sign up before Feb. 14, 2020 to be entered into a raffle!
Balanced You knows that financial wellness is important to you and your well-being. As such, King County employees are eligible for 90 days of confidential, unbiased money coaching through My Secure Advantage (MSA) every year. You can take the first step with MSA by opening an account and taking the online financial assessment. If you take the assessment before February 14, 2020, MSA will enter you into a drawing to receive a $100 Amazon gift card! Visit the Balanced You blog for more information.
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Be Prepared for Wintry Weather
Cold, wintry weather is forecast for next week, with the potential snow and ice, so please be prepared for possible delays to your commute and impacts to business operations. As always, have a plan for your commute, dress warmly, and let safety be your guide when making commute decisions.
Stay informed: Make sure you’re getting the latest King County information at work and at home in the event of inclement weather:
- Call the Employee Hotline—206-205-8600 (save it to your phone now!).
- Check your King County email for specific directives and updates. Log on at https://outlook.kingcounty.gov
- Contact your supervisor for instructions.
- Follow King County on Twitter—@KingCountyWA, @kcmetrobus, @kcroads, and @kcemployees
- Check your agency website or Intranet (if applicable), and monitor local media channels.
- Visit the Emergency News page at kcemergency.com for regional impacts.
KCInform: Make sure you can be reached in a major emergency. If you haven’t yet registered your personal contact or work cell information in KCInform, please contact kcinform@kingcounty.gov anytime or 206-296-3830 between 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Monday – Friday to request your unique registration link. Watch this short video to learn more or visit our website.
HR Policies: When an agency remains open, but conditions prevent you from reporting to work or from reporting on time, notify your supervisor as soon as possible. You may request leave, subject to approval by your supervisor. If you have no leave accrued, your supervisor may approve leave without pay to cover absences. Sick leave may not be used. Refer to HR Bulletin 2011-0009 County Operations During Emergency Situations and Inclement Weather (Sheriff’s Office employees refer to KCSO Inclement Weather Policy; Superior Court and District Court employees please see check court policies).
Alternative work arrangements: If telecommuting is an option for your job, make sure you submit a Telecommuting Agreement in advance for approval. KCIT has created a telework resources site that answers many questions.
Resources for travelers
- Sign up for Metro Transit Alerts (text, email, tweets via @kcmetrobus, see RSS feed via desktop or mobile RSS reader)
- Sign up for King County Road Alerts (text, email, tweets via @kcroads)
- Sign up for King County Water Taxi Alerts (text, email)
- Visit the King County My Commute page
- Visit the Eye on Your Metro Commute (blog during peak weekday commutes).
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Featured Job: Administrative Specialist II – Chinese Language
Salary: $22.24 – $28.33 Hourly
Location: WA 98057-2906, WA
Job Type: Career Service, Full Time, 35 hrs/week
Department: KCE – King County Elections
Job Number: 2019RL11109
Division: Voter Services
Closing: 1/14/2020 11:59 PM Pacific
Learn more about this position or view all available positions.
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Pet of the Week: LB
LB is a 7 year-old male Heeler mix (A478953). His personality color is GREEN, meaning he is an adaptable dog who loves to go with the flow! This handsome boy is very smart and is currently practicing how to “sit,” “shake,” and “stay.” He tends to calm down more when people around him stay calm, and he does best when he gets lots of exercise and something to keep his mind busy. LB was brought in by his previous family because they could no longer care for him. They described him as very loving and also independent. LB likes to play fetch, adores back rubs, and just loves spending time outside!
Read more and view all available pets at www.kingcounty.gov/adoptapet.
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2020 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration, Jan. 16
Dear King County employee,
Please join us in honoring our nation’s foremost human rights leader and our County’s namesake, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020, noon to 1 p.m. at Town Hall Seattle, 1119 8th Ave, Seattle, WA 98101.
The theme for our 2020 Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration is “Yes, we are on the move and no wave of racism can stop us. We are on the move now.” This year’s keynote is by john a. powell, Director, Othering & Belonging Institute, University of California, Berkeley. For more information contact Matias.Valenzuela@kingcounty.gov or MPadillaOcampo@kingcounty.gov.
For those who cannot join, the event will be recorded by KCTV for streaming afterwards.
The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration is a County-sponsored event and King County directors, managers, and supervisors are encouraged to permit employees to participate, if possible. Read King County’s HR Bulletin regarding employee attendance at County-sponsored events for more information. Your attendance is of course voluntary.
Getting to the celebration
Employees in the downtown Seattle area are encouraged to walk or take public transit. Employees coming from outside downtown Seattle should look at transit and carpool options. If public transit options downtown are not accessible, please email MPadillaOcampo@kingcounty.gov to arrange an Access Paratransit shuttle pick up outside of King Street Center or the Chinook Building.
To get to Town Hall Seattle from King County offices located in Downtown Seattle, take Link Light Rail and exit at University Street Station) or King County Metro Route 2 and exit directly across the street from Town Hall on 8th Avenue and Seneca.
Celebration follow-up, Jan. 21
As we will spark reflection and ideas at the MLK Celebration, employees are encouraged to continue the dialogue to deepen our equity, inclusion and belonging discussions and actions in work teams, departments, and communities. One opportunity to participate in facilitated follow-up conversations will be held at the King Street Center 8th floor conference center on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.. All King County employees are welcome. For more information, contact KKibet@kingcounty.gov.
On the Move: An MLK Day ESJ Festival, Jan. 30
Departments all over King County government are working hard to move our county forward, and closer to our Equity and Social Justice goals. Join us at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Festival to learn how we’re moving forward, and share what you are doing to make King County a welcoming community where every person can thrive. The festival will take place Thursday, Jan. 30, 2020, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m., at the Chinook Building, Rooms 121/123. For more information, contact BMcConnaughey@kingcounty.gov.
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Discover how to build wealth for retirement, sessions Jan. 14, 15 and 16
You and your spouse or significant other are invited to learn more about saving for retirement with the King County Deferred Compensation Plan. Several in-person sessions are coming up Jan. 14, 15, and 16, including:
- Social Security Simplified
- Retirement Ready
- Savings Strategies
- Financial Wellness
- Women and Retirement
See details and registration. Other education sessions are offered throughout the year. For more information about Deferred Compensation Plan education—including webinars—go to the Deferred Compensation web page. If you have any questions, please contact KC Deferred Comp.
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Take Winter by Storm
Snow warnings for this week are a reminder to be prepared for seasonal weather hazards. While winter can be wonderful, it can also be quite dangerous unless you’re prepared. Snow, ice, floods, and strong windstorms are just a few of the seasonal weather hazards that can impact our region.
Being prepared for winter emergencies not only protects our families and property now, but also provides peace of mind for unpredictable disasters such as earthquakes.
While we can’t stop winter from happening, we can get ready for it. Take steps today to plan for how you will weather this winter storm season by visiting TakeWinterByStorm.org.
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Meet Colleen McIngalls, Program Manager for the Protection Order Advocacy Program
Crossposted from the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office Facebook
It’s tough to do an interview about Colleen McIngalls because she just wants to talk about how great her Protection Order Advocacy Program team is.
Colleen arrived at the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office (PAO) a little more than two years ago. Prior to joining the PAO, she spent 11 years at Victim Support Services, serving her last three years with the organization as Director of Victim Services. She is also an adjunct faculty member at Seattle University in the Masters in Criminal Justice Department and teaches two victimology courses Fall and Winter quarters.
“I have dedicated my career toward anti-violence, anti-oppression, and race and social justice work. My passion for this work developed during my undergrad when I interned at the local domestic violence community agency. After college I was hired at Victim Support Services as a victim advocate where I assisted on general crime victim cases (Homicides, Vehicular Homicides and Assaults, physical Assault cases, and other mainstream crimes).
“Assisting crime survivors toward accessing justice and other services has brought so much value to my life and my work. I have the unique opportunity to bear witness along someone’s journey and hold space for their experience and aid their voice in the process.”
She loves her team and the work. “Just this week,” she told me, “a DV victim we helped years ago came back to the office with a huge bag of stuffed animals for kids. This is an annual trip. She appreciated the work we did for her and the work we will do tomorrow for the next family.” (The photo below is Colleen holding one of those stuffed animals.)
As we spoke, an attorney came in to thank Colleen for the cinnamon roll and conversation before her court appearance. She grabbed her coat and the bags she casually left in Colleen’s office while she was in court. Another staff member walked by and they chatted about holiday plans. Colleen makes everyone feel welcomed and valued.
Colleen will be taking some time off in the new year. She and her wife are expecting baby number two late January! A girl to join their three-year-old boy. Colleen says her family keeps her grounded and her favorite way to unwind after a day of intense and important work is a family trip to the local park.
Employee News 