Executive appoints Alex Fryer as new communications director
King County Executive Dow Constantine has appointed Alex Fryer to serve as his new communications director, effective Aug. 1, 2016. Fryer has extensive background and experience in both public and private sector communications, most recently as Vice President of Public Affairs for The Fearey Group, a local media and government relations firm. “Alex Fryer’s exceptional knowledge and expertise in communications, and in community outreach and engagement, will help advance our work on equity and social justice, climate change, regional mobility, implementing our groundbreaking Best Starts for Kids initiative, and continuing to build… Read More
Metro’s top bus driver praised for caring, positive attitude, customer service
“Try to stay positive, one day at a time, one trip at a time and enjoy your free time doing whatever makes you happy.” – Vicki Leslie, Metro Transit Operator of the Year Known for her safe driving, quick wit and ability to brighten the days of her riders and coworkers, bus driver Vicki Leslie today was named King County Metro Transit Operator of the Year. Metro officials and fellow bus drivers praised Leslie during a surprise ceremony in Bellevue, echoing commendations she received from customers over the years. Leslie has been… Read More
Coordinated Entry for All: Connecting the homeless to housing
Shared from the DCHS Touching Base Newsletter Five weeks into operations, DCHS has made significant strides as it works to implement Coordinated Entry for All (CEA), a regional coordinated entry system to connect those experiencing homelessness to housing and services. CEA aims to reduce barriers to housing for those facing a housing crisis through a standardized assessment tool and coordinated referral and housing placement process. In June, King County took over referrals for family and young adult programs, which has been managed by Catholic Community Services and All Home through Family Housing… Read More
Public Health’s hidden gem
Dear fellow King County employee, Sometimes things of great value are hidden in plain sight. That was my sense on Tuesday, July 12 when I had the pleasure of a short drop-in to visit with our employees at the Downtown Public Health Clinic at Fourth and Blanchard in Belltown. Despite the short time available, it didn’t take long to see the dedication and hard work of our committed Public Health staff up close. The site is actually several clinics in one, with staff and services tailored for the needs of specific communities,… Read More
Inventing a better mousetrap: Innovative employees create custom salmon monitoring vessel
Finding new and better ways to recover threatened salmon species in King County is a top priority of the Water and Land Resources Division of the Department of Natural Resources and Parks. Chris Gregersen, an Environmental Scientist who works to monitor projects designed to improve fish habitat, has recently done just that while saving the county about $45,000. The Watershed and Ecological Assessment Team use an in-water, fish sampling technique called electrofishing. It’s a process that temporarily stuns fish allowing them to be gathered and evaluated – without being harmed – and… Read More
Kudos! Deborah Kennedy, Manager, Archives, Records Management and Mail Services
Deb, I want to take a moment and truly recognize the amazing work you are doing all across Archives, Records Management and Mail Services (ARMMS). At today’s all ARMMS staff meeting – it was a joy to listen to everyone of your supervisors – in every single area – talk about listening to their customers and taking actions to improve operations for the customers – AND – listening to employees. Each area is actively engaged in continuous improvement – using problem solving, implementing employee driven ideas and supporting and recognizing their colleagues. It was… Read More
Social Media Spotlight: King County Council Facebook
The Metropolitan King County Council governs the 14th most populous county in the nation and the second largest government in Washington state. With 1.9 people living within 2,200 square miles, King County has a larger population than 14 U.S. states and more land area than the state of Rhode Island. Follow the King County Council on Facebook today! Click here to view all King County social media pages.
Tech Tip: How to Manually Configure Outlook Anywhere
Read about how to configure a mailbox for Outlook Anywhere. King County devices will be automatically configured for Outlook Anywhere. If you’d like to configure your personally owned device, follow the instructions in the link below on the King County IT Service Center website. Read more at the KCIT Service Center website
CPR classes available this fall for employees
King County employees are welcome to sign up for available CPR classes hosted in the Chinook building September through December. Class dates are as follows: Basic Heartsaver CPR/AED Training (Open to all King County employees) register with andrew.burns@kingcounty.gov: Tuesday, September 13, 2016 – 9 a.m. to noon, Chinook Bldg, Room 126 Monday, November 14, 2016 – 9 a.m. to noon, Chinook Bldg, Room 126 Refresher Heartsaver CPR/AED Training (Open to all King county employees) register with andrew.burns@kingcounty.gov: Tuesday, September 13, 2016 – 1-3 p.m., Chinook Bldg, Room 126 Tuesday, October 11, 2016 – 1-3 p.m.,… Read More
PeopleSoft upgrades and upcoming system outage
This is to inform all County staff that the PeopleSoft system will be unavailable from noon on Friday, August 5 through 6 p.m. on Monday, August 8. During this planned outage, the PeopleSoft team will be upgrading the system tools and applying vendor-provided updates and maintenance. This work will begin on Friday, August 5 at noon and is scheduled to be completed by 6 p.m. on Monday, August 8. The system will not be available for access by any County staff during this outage window. There will be a communication sent out to all County staff… Read More
