Social Media Spotlight: Regional Animal Services of King County Twitter
Regional Animal Services of King County (RASKC) helps pets find forever homes!
Follow Regional Animal Services of King County on Twitter today!
Click here to view all King County social media pages.
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Removing barriers from job posting increases opportunities
Access to career advancement opportunities was a key theme in last year’s Employee Survey, with only 50 percent of employees saying they were satisfied with opportunities to achieve their career goals.
One way that King County is making job opportunities accessible to more employees is by removing unnecessary minimum qualifications from job postings.
“Shifting the focus from an education-based approach to a skills- and experience-based one “screens in” more applicants who have the skills to be successful in a role but don’t have a degree or certification that really isn’t needed,” said Susie Slonecker, Interim Director of Human Resources Division.
This process will be an ongoing, long-term effort that will help remove barriers to obtaining employment with King County, broaden the pool of qualified talent, and increase internal movement by creating opportunities for employees to be more competitive.
Some County positions will still require degrees, licenses or accreditations but where an education level is not necessary attribute for a job, the County is removing these requirements.
Elimination of barriers to recruitment and promotion by shifting the hiring process to focus on core attributes rather than unnecessary education and experience requirements is one of the priorities in the 2016-2022 Equity and Social Justice Strategic Plan.
See all current County job opportunities here.
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King County and Goodwill: Preparing inmates for release
For people who find themselves in the criminal justice system, transitioning back into society, including getting a job and accessing housing, can often be challenging.
To ease that transition King County removed criminal history disclosure requirements from its employment applications early last year. At the same time, the County also began a partnership with Goodwill to better prepare County inmates for release.
The partnership began with a Goodwill Job Training pilot at King County Correctional Facility.
“The Goodwill Job Training program actually started out as a pilot at KCCF for about a year before being made available at MRJC,” explained Nancy Garcia, Project and Program Manager with the County’s Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention.
Nine students earned certificates for completing MRJC’s first Goodwill Employment and Reintegration Strategies job training class this July, and six others earned their certificates last month.
So far, five classes have been taught at KCCF – including two for female students – and Maleng Regional Justice Center has now held two classes. Nine students earned certificates for completing MRJC’s first Goodwill Employment and Reintegration Strategies job training class this July, and six others earned their certificates last month.
Participants in the seven-week program meet for two and a half hours twice per week to learn how to prepare to find jobs upon release. The program includes training in resume writing, interviewing and disclosure of criminal history. In order to complete the class, students must meet both attendance and participation expectations, as well as demonstrate abilities to perform competencies including: developing strategies to explore careers, being competent in job search activities with a conviction history, and completing both a resume and a mock interview.
Cameron Carl, Program Facilitator and Case Manager with Goodwill, is the Employment and Reintegration Strategies job training instructor. “Goodwill provides quality, effective employment and basic education to individuals experiencing significant barriers to economic opportunity,” said Cameron.
She invests a lot into the program, and the support for the students does not end with a certificate. Upon release, Cameron says, “students receive up to three months of case management services from any of the Seattle Goodwill Job Training and Education Centers located in our five counties; King, Kitsap, Skagit, Snohomish and Whatcom.” Case management services include transportation assistance as well as assistance with basic needs (housing, healthcare, clothing, etc.). As a case manager, Cameron resumes working with the students once they are released and makes the necessary connections and referrals to resources and employment specialists.
Nancy sums it up best by saying, “It is a wonderful story to tell!”
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DAJD Officer William (Ken) Antonius shares his hobby with community
Shared from the Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention’s Employee Spotlight
One of many highlights in his life, Officer Antonius and his grandkids spontaneously performed with The Dapper Dans at Disneyland!
In the Fall of 2017, Corrections Officer William Antonius hopes to retire after more than 30 years with the Department. His career with the Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention (DAJD) began in 1985 after serving in the U.S. Army and National Guard during his senior year at Auburn High School. Married to his high school sweetheart, they raised four beautiful children and have 9 precious grandkids. A devoted family man and public servant, Officer Antonius also makes time to give back to the community and does so in one of the most unique but also most enjoyable ways possible: as a king!
They’re called the Federal Way Harmony Kings, a barbershop Chorus and a chapter of the nationally recognized, Barbershop Harmony Society, established in 1938. With hundreds of chapters across the country and around the world in countries such as Sweden, London, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia; barbershop quartet is a spectacular world of it’s own.
Officer Antonius has been with the Harmony Kings for 17 years. One of the many exciting perks of being a member of this traditional, all-American phenomenon is the opportunity to compete with and meet others from around the globe. The competition starts in the Spring time at the divisional level for choruses and quartets; Seattle and Tacoma. From there, it moves on to districts; Washington, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, British Colombia, and Alaska. If the quartet survives that round, they advance to the International competition for Gold, Silver, or Bronze. Judging is based on singing, presentation, and musicality.
“We never make it too far though,” he chuckled. “To get at that level, it’s like another fulltime job. Between work and spending time with my family, I can’t imagine.”
But what Officer Antonius humbly left out until much later in our conversation is the community outreach and volunteer work they do. Being a non-profit organization, they host an annual show to fundraise for teens and young adults between 12 – 20 years of age to attend Harmony Explosion, a 3-day summer camp held at Pacific Lutheran University.
“There’s about 250 attendees every summer, but what’s astonishing is that it started with maybe about 20 kids when it first started many years ago. It’s a youth movement.”
The camp teaches them to ‘Sing for Life’ as they build confidence, teamwork, and leadership through performance. Programs like Harmony Explosion are important as research finds that children who sing in choruses receive significantly better grades than those who have never been a part of a choir. Parents of choristers report that it has also contributed to other positive qualities such as good memory, good practice and homework habits, and high levels of creativity.
The Harmony Kings rehearse every Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. at St. Luke’s Presbyterian Church in Federal Way. Guests are always welcome to watch their acapella singing and can even learn the craft. When they’re not rehearsing, volunteering, or competing for that international title, they could be doing other major things like singing Christmas carols for the Alzheimer’s Unit at retirement homes; opening for Grammy award-winning artist and music legend, Patti Labelle; auditioning for one of America’s favorite television shows, America’s Got Talent, and making that special someone smile when performing specially ordered singing grams to him/her; Valentine Grams are Officer Antonius’ favorites!
Officer Antonius, second to the left, and fellow Harmony Kings after singing a Valentine Gram.
The Department will surely miss Officer Antonius when he leaves us next year, but we’re thankful that he shared a part of his story with us. When I asked him what message he’d like to pass on to his colleagues, he replied “Please don’t take your work home with you. You must find ways to alleviate the stress.”
He went on to share how grateful he is for the 30 plus years of amazing friendships he’s built at DAJD and how that has helped him stay positive throughout the decades.
“There are five or six of us. We get together for a movie and dinner at least once a month, outside of work. You just gotta do it. It’s how you keep going.”
He also accredits his first and foremost passion, the love of his life; his wife.
“Forty-two years together. She’s my rock.”
Mrs. Antonius, we thank you, too, for sharing your husband with us at DAJD!
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Featured Job: Supervising Engineer
Closing Date/Time: Sun. 10/23/16 11:59 PM
Salary: $43.59 – $55.25 Hourly
Job Type: Special Duty Assignment or Term Limited Temp (TLT)
Location: King County Airport, 7300 Perimeter Road S, Room 129, Seattle, WA 98108-3848, Washington
Department: Department of Transportation – Airport Division
Description: The Airport Division is looking for a skilled, knowledgeable, highly-motivated, and enthusiastic team player to independently lead an engineering responsible for providing engineering, environmental, and project management services to the Department of Transportation, Airport Division.
This position works closely with Maintenance, Operations, Planning, Business Information Systems, and Finance sections of the Airport to provide technical services and data to these internal customers. The Supervising Engineer position also interfaces with tenants, regulatory agencies and other stakeholders on a variety of issues impacting the Airport.
Learn more about this position or view all available jobs.
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The Annual Employee Giving Drive and Disability Awareness Month
The County’s 2016 Annual Employee Giving Drive continues, and this year’s goal is to raise $1.82 million. King County employees have donated $286,165.44 so far, bringing the drive to 15.7% of the goal!
The Employee Giving Program is a philanthropic resource for King County employees that benefits county employees by providing prescreened nonprofits, allowing you to plan your giving, making it possible for you to donate time (vacation or compensatory hours), and offering anonymity.
In observance of King County’s Disability Awareness Month, the following are four nonprofits serving the King County area that are eligible to receive donations through the Employee Giving Program. Take a look at the services they provide!
- The Arc of King County (9233) 233 6th Ave N Seattle, WA 98109 – Serving individuals and families with intellectual and developmental disabilities through case management, peer support, leadership training, and advocacy.
- Children’s Therapy Center (9200) 10811 SE Kent-Kangley Rd. Kent, WA 98030 – Provides physical, occupational, & speech therapy; early intervention services; orthotics & equipment; & other essential services & products to children with special needs.
- SightConnection (9301) 9709 Third Ave NE, Ste. 100, Seattle, WA 98107 – Providing aid, tools and support to the visually impaired and blind to remain or retain independence. Services provided regardless of ability to pay.
- Children’s Institute for Learning Differences (9280) 2640 Benson Rd S, Renton, WA 98055 – CHILD addresses the needs of children often denied access to local education programs due to challenges posed by severe sensory processing disorders, learning disabilities, attention deficit disorders, emotional-behavioral disabilities, autism, and extreme anxiety.
You may pledge either online in PeopleSoft or with a paper form. Through payroll donations, employees can donate to as many as 20 nonprofits, and contributions can be made bimonthly (first two pay checks each month), monthly (second paycheck each month) or annually (first paycheck in January).
Every donation made through the Employee Giving Program is tax deductible. Just keep track of the proper paperwork and you can deduct your donations when you file your taxes! This year’s drive runs through November 18. For more information, visit the EGP site. For additional questions, contact your EGP Ambassador, email EmployeeGiving@KingCounty.gov or call 206-263-9405.
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Tech Tip: SharePoint Basics Training in 2 hours!
SharePoint is one of the most powerful file sharing systems available to King County teams. Starting this week, KCIT is excited to start offering free in-person Basic SharePoint Training sessions.
- Bring your laptop
- Get the SharePoint basics under your belt in 2 hours.
- Meet KCIT’s new SharePoint trainer
- Learn how SharePoint can help your teams work better, smarter and faster.
- Basic training is Friday, Oct. 14 and Thursday, Oct. 27.
- Intermediate training is Tuesday, Oct. 25.
- You can even schedule custom training from our new SharePoint website.
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Making history: Preserving your program’s legacy
How your work is remembered depends on you!
This workshop will provide guidance to County employees on steps you can take now to preserve County history. Learn how you can document County programs to help future researchers make the most of records that are transferred to the Archives.
The workshop will be held Friday, October 28, 2016 from 2 to 3 p.m. It will be in the Chinook Building, room 126. Click here for more information and to register.
Topics will include using retention schedules to determine archival and potentially archival value, appraisals, organizing records for access, documenting significant events and program history, and handling and storing records for long-term preservation and use. We will also touch on ideas for exhibits and other ways to highlight your program’s legacy.
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What you may not know about health in the Chinatown-International District
Crossposted from Public Health Insider
We are writing a three-part series on the health of one of the most vibrant neighborhoods in our region, the Chinatown-International District (CID). With a one year nationally-funded grant, The BUILD Health Challenge has led to a robust community partnership that will take a deep look into the health and vibrancy of the CID.
To start us off, Nadine Chan, Epidemiologist from Public Health, shares some of her insights from taking a close look at what our health data can tell us about the neighborhood.
The BUILD Health Challenge grant—which funds InterIm Community Development Association’s Healthy Communities Program and its partners—selected grantees to work on “bold, upstream, integrated, local, and data-driven” solutions for healthy communities.
Read more at Public Health Insider
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Watch RASKC’s stories on Univision Seattle
Crossposted from Tails from RASKC
RASKC is excited to share the first of nine segments which Univision Seattle, KUNS channel 51, will be proudly airing each Wednesday at 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. Univision is the fifth largest network in the U.S. with the largest Spanish-speaking audience in the world. This amazing opportunity, which starts by highlighting RASKC’s success in saving 9 out of 10 lives, will serve as a public service announcement to engage and inform the community on the various services provided by King County’s Regional Animal Services.
Read more at Tails from RASKC
Employee News 