Employee News
Telling the stories of King County employees
Crossposted from the KCSO Employee newsletter Last week, a Canadian woman and her son, David, stopped by Precinct 2 and the Sammamish Police Department. David has special needs and is an avid collector of police department memorabilia. He and his family visit local agencies wherever he travels. He’s also a competitive powerlifter who has competed in Europe. Although David and his mom dropped in on short notice, the teams at Precinct 2 and Sammamish SPD quickly shifted gears to make sure his visit was one to remember. He enjoyed full tours, got… Read More
Crossposted from the KCSO employee newsletter Recently, the King County Sheriff’s Office was proud to take part in the annual Festival at Mount Si—our first big community event since we began working with the city to again provide contract police services sometime in 2026. Members from Community Programs and Services Division (CPSD) and Precinct 2 were out in full force, meeting residents, answering questions, and enjoying the festive atmosphere. We had the chance to connect with North Bend’s Mayor, one of the City Councilmembers, and other community leaders, all of whom shared… Read More
Adapted from the FMD Monthly Newsletter Stuart Herrera-Enzuate has joined the Facilities Management Division (FMD) as the new Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Facility Code Compliance Program Manager. He will work with FMD team to develop, implement, and manage the ADA Transition Plan, ensuring compliance across all FMD-managed facilities. “I am excited to join the FMD and King County team,” said Herrera-Enzuate. “I look forward to contributing my skills and insights, as well as listening and learning from the wealth of knowledge within this team.” Read more.
Crossposted from Public Health Insider School’s about more than math quizzes and book reports. It’s where kids go to play, grow, and build community. But where kids thrive, so do germs. Enter: vaccinations! Vaccinations are the body’s practice test for diseases like measles and whooping cough. That way, if the real thing shows up, kids’ immune systems know exactly what to do. Vaccinations are required for school and child care. Children entering school, child care, or other early learning programs are required to get certain vaccinations before they can start. Check the full list of requirements… Read More
King County employees can take advantage of a 20% discount on weekend tickets to the 2025 Bumbershoot Arts and Music Festival. With this discount, the two day pass with service fees will be $149. Bumbershoot takes place Saturday, Aug. 30 and Sunday, Aug. 31 at Seattle Center. Performers include Weezer, Janelle Monae, Aurora, Bright Eyes, and more. The festival will also feature music, art, culture, food and drinks, and much more. Purchase tickets at this special link, or use promo code KingGov25. Learn more about Bumbershoot here. See all available discounts on the Employee Discount intranet… Read More
King County’s Stormwater Services Section offers a surface water management fee discount for low-income property owners in unincorporated King County. Low-income households may be eligible for a 50 percent discount on this annual fee for their primary residence. Residents already approved for the King County Senior Citizen and People with Disabilities Reduction through the Assessor’s office do not need to apply. Additionally, Stormwater Services Section staff will help identify discounts callers may be eligible for. The open period to apply for this discount is every year from Aug. 1 through Sept. 15. Learn more… Read More
Crossposted from the DES Express King County International Airport recently participated in the Chinatown-International District Celebration for the first time. Troy Chen, Community Outreach Specialist, recommended the airport join in the event, held on July 12. Chen, who is fluent in Mandarin, Shanghainese (the Shanghai dialect), Spanish and English, engaged with community members and highlighted several ongoing and upcoming projects happening around the airfield. Read more.
Crossposted from the DAJD newsletter After about a year with King County Metro, Catherine Pickard has returned to DAJD as the new Juvenile Division Deputy Director. Her first day was Aug. 4. “Her decision to return speaks volumes about her dedication to youth justice and her desire to be part of our renewed vision,” Juvenile Division Director Chuck Parkins said. “I look forward to Catherine joining our leadership team and have been very impressed with her background, vision, and desire to connect with our important work throughout the deputy recruitment.” Read more.
As you prep for school or childcare, Washington State Department of Health (DOH) makes it easy to know which vaccines are required for kids. These simple charts from Washington DOH’s School and Child Care Immunizations webpage walk you through what’s needed at each age: Required Immunizations for School-aged Children and Required Immunizations for Childcare. To check if your child is already up to date on their vaccines, you can follow any of the steps in this blog. Read more.
If you or your family and friends live in the communities of South Park, Boulevard Park, Duwamish, or Bryn Mawr-Skyway, we are planning for clean water and need your help. We are making a list of priority problems to fix in these areas through a clean water survey. Your information on local flooding, potholes, erosion, and septic problems will build the project list to protect property and communities. The survey takes about five minutes and you can sign up to win a $100 gift card. Share your feedback at https://tinyurl.com/SAMPsurvey by Aug. 17. The survey… Read More
Crossposted from Metro Matters Another boost in King County Metro bus service begins Aug. 30. New and improved routes will better serve Eastside communities and help facilitate connections to Sound Transit’s 2 Line light rail stations. Metro also is adding bus service in Seattle on Route 106 funded by the voter-approved Seattle Transit Measure. On-demand service Metro Flex is expanding to Bellevue on Sept. 15. Read more.
Now that Election Day has come and gone, it’s time to be sure your ballot can be counted. Sometimes folks forget to sign their ballot and sometimes a ballot signature doesn’t match the ones King County Elections has on file. If you received notice about an issue with your signature, take a moment to resolve the issue. You can return a signature resolution form by mail or email, in person, or online at kce.wiki/SigCure by 4:30 p.m. on Aug. 18. Trained staff review all signature resolution forms and verify voters’ identities so their ballots can… Read More
Balanced You Wellness Heroes highlights employees doing things to better their lives, the lives of their colleagues, and our community. Meet Wellness Hero Young Jang, IT Project Manager, King County Metro. Young discusses her work and passion for technology, and how teamwork is driving innovation across our transit systems. She shares highlights from two major projects, how collaboration brings her joy while working with talented colleagues to watch her work come to life, and what she does for self-care. When she’s not leading tech transformations, she recharges through meditation, baking, and hitting… Read More
Crossposted from the DAJD newsletter Officer Kevin Ntabo grew up with farming as a way of life. When not in uniform he carries on that tradition by raising and selling crops in Kent. You might assume that agriculture and corrections have nothing in common. But Ntabo says there’s a key to success in either profession: patience. “People will say that farming is a hard and dirty job, but it is not if you have a passion to do it,” Ntabo said. “It takes a little passion to do it, and sacrifice.” Read more.
Ava Michler, with the Performance and Strategy (PSB) team, spoke with Sara Tollefson and M.J. Wheble about the Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention’s (DAJD) switch to a new background investigation platform used in job hiring. This change saves money and aims to reduce vacancy rates. The DAJD project team collaborates with the new platform’s vendor to improve experience for users and HR analysts. Collecting data is important, as they look to answer questions like: Are we successfully reaching diverse communities in our hiring process? Read the full story here. Take a moment… Read More
Crossposted from Headwaters By Nalia Matias-Jacinto, WLRD Communications Intern In King County, water is the foundation of daily life, cultural traditions, and thriving ecosystems. But what happens when poop pollution contaminates our water and dangerous levels of bacteria threaten public health and culinary treasures? Solving that problem requires more than infrastructure alone. Scientists, public health experts, and communities must work together to keep the waters and the people of King County safe and healthy— and that’s exactly what we’re doing. Read more.
An email from King County’s vendor KnowBe4 was sent Aug. 4 to all employees with links to annual cybersecurity training. This is not a phishing attempt. Annual cybersecurity training is required for all employees and contractors with access to King County systems (even if you took it last year). Training must be completed by Jan. 30, 2026. Employees who complete cybersecurity training by 5pm on Monday, Aug. 18 will be entered in a prize drawing. Additionally, the first department to cross the finish line (100% participation) will win serious bragging rights, and a shiny trophy. (Please note: this competition is only available… Read More
Priscilla de Andrade, with the Performance and Strategy (PSB) team, recently interviewed Meagan Jackson, who leads the Operations and Maintenance team in the On-Site Septic systems (OSS) Program. They discussed how performance data is driving smarter service delivery, faster permit reviews, and more equitable responses to septic system failures across King County. To ensure the program is meeting its goals effectively and equitably, the OSS team relies on a robust performance monitoring system. They collect and analyze data from permit applications and inspection reports to track trends, identify problems early, and evaluate… Read More
King County Parks is applying multiple strategies to simultaneously protect historic nature camps and provide more equitable access to a new one in South King County, connecting more young people to healthy outdoor recreation and environmental education. King County Executive Shannon Braddock recently toured Camp Sealth on Vashon Island where the county helped the nonprofit that has operated the summer camp for more than a century permanently protect most of the campsite. The Department of Natural Resources and Parks also partnered to reopen Camp Kilworth in Federal Way and helped Highline Public… Read More
On July 26, 2025, King County Executive Shannon Braddock proclaimed Disability Pride Day and invited all employees and residents to celebrate the contributions of people with disabilities and recommit to the principles of justice, equity, and “Nothing About Us Without Us.” You can read the full proclamation here. Executive Braddock and the Office of Equity and Racial and Social Justice (OERSJ) celebrated during an event on Saturday, July 26 that included reading the Disability Pride Month proclamation followed by a short program. Monisha Harrell, Director of King County’s Office of Equity and Racial… Read More