PRIDE is coming June 25
“Whether you arrived here last week or whether you’ve lived here for five generations, you belong here” – King County Executive Dow Constantine Please join King County Executive Dow Constantine and other colleagues, friends and family as we walk in the Pride Parade on Sunday, June 25. Bring yourself, your family, your friends and enjoy the parade together! As always, there will be fabulous t-shirts available for order soon for about $10 with our theme for this year: We ALL Belong Here. Want to be up on all of the Pride information?… Read More
From the Hip: Laura Inveen, Presiding Judge, King County Superior Court
Spotlight on Jason Clark, Superior Court Equity and Justice Advocate As Presiding Judge of Superior Court, I was asked to write about the court. We have a lot going on, so it was a tough choice. After giving it some thought, the work being done by Jason Clark, our Equity and Justice Advocate rose to the top. Jason’s work is wide-ranging. He’s responsible for developing community-building and engagement strategies, for planning and policy/program development, and for general planning support for projects related to reducing racial and ethnic disparities in the juvenile justice… Read More
Executive unveils stronger community-centered response for youth and families in crisis
Crossposted from King County Youth Justice King County Executive Dow Constantine announced new options for parents, youth, school personnel and local law enforcement that will divert and reduce the number of youth who come into contact with the courts and detention facilities. The “Safe Spaces” proposal connects youth who may have traditionally gone into the criminal justice system to community-based alternatives that provide supports and crisis stabilization that were previously unavailable. Youth and families can access counseling, healthcare, treatment for mental health or substance abuse, short-term crisis beds, education and mentoring and… Read More
Executive Constantine thanks DNRP employees for becoming “carbon neutral”
King County Executive Dow Constantine today congratulated Department of Natural Resources and Parks employees for helping DNRP become King County’s first “Carbon Neutral” agency. Dear DNRP employee, Earth Week is a great chance to congratulate every Department of Natural Resources and Parks (DNRP) employee for helping DNRP become King County’s first “Carbon Neutral” agency! Please watch the video linked here (also available below) from DNRP Director Christie True and me, thanking employees not only for helping DNRP reduce and remove more greenhouse gas emissions than it generates, but doing it a year ahead of… Read More
From the Hip: Caroline Whalen, Director of Executive Services
Employee engagement is job #1 When Dow Constantine and Fred Jarrett asked me to serve as director of the Department of Executive Services (DES) seven years ago, I frankly was overwhelmed. How could I move out of operations and project management to lead the diverse set of agencies that make up DES? I told them, “I’m the person you put in a black suit and throw out of the helicopter with a specific mission, not the person in the planning room overseeing the operation.” But, they had confidence in me to make… Read More
Listening to employees to build a learning organization
Access to learning and advancement opportunities was a major theme in the 2016 Employee Survey so King County Executive Dow Constantine invited some employees to his latest Listening Session to hear about the challenges and successes employees face in growing their knowledge and careers at King County. “I want employees to be able to learn new skills so we can not only get better at what we do and serve our customers better, but you can also take advantage of opportunities to advance,” Executive Constantine told the group. “I want to hear… Read More
State of the County: Executive Constantine announces focus on healthy aging, new reception centers for youth
In his eighth State of the County address, Executive Dow Constantine introduced the theme: you belong here. Noting that 40 percent of the region’s population increase since 2010 has been from people not born in the country, Executive Constantine said the region’s diversity was one of its greatest assets. “All these people came here to seek a better life but they are making all of our lives better,” said Executive Constantine, speaking at the Auburn Community and Event Center. Read more here and view the video below.
2017 State of the County address
Dear fellow King County employee, In our work together, we are continuing to reinvent how King County does business. We call it Best Run Government, a mindset that embraces innovation, continuous improvement and teamwork to take on challenges, big and small, in our communities. Along the way we’ve been winning national recognition and the support of our residents for our ideas. That support led to the success of Sound Transit 3, which will allow us to build on the successes of our transit system – including Metro’s RapidRide network and ORCA LIFT… Read More
Executive Constantine on new travel ban: In King County, we are taking a much different path
The new Executive Order on immigration announced today may have different words, but the spirit is the same: to exclude people based on their religion and country of origin. Such a policy betrays the fundamental principle that has guided our nation since its inception and been central to our success: that we welcome people who come here fleeing tyranny, fleeing oppression, seeking a better life. At King County, we are taking a much different path. We are a welcoming community, and I thank Council Chair McDermott and the rest of the King… Read More
From the Hip: Martha Cohen, Manager, Office of Interpreter Services
A voice for all King County ranks nationally as a top county in numbers for refugee and immigrant resettlement. Indeed, 98198 is one of the most ethnically diverse zip codes in the U.S. It can be said that what New York City was to cultural diversity in 1905, Seattle/King County is today. Since 1992, this office has provided interpreters in 161 different languages including ASL for all Superior Court departments: civil and criminal cases, deaf jurors and court related programs at the KCCH (Seattle), MRJC (Kent) and Youth Services Center (12th and… Read More
Employee News 