For the 11th year in a row, 小黄鸭视频 County Government is being honored with multiple prestigious Achievement Awards from the . The organization works to advance excellence in public service with this competitive awards program, pitting 小黄鸭视频 County against more than 3,000 counties across the nation.
鈥淚鈥檓 extremely proud of every #Team小黄鸭视频 employee who worked to innovate the programs that are now being recognized as models for other counties,鈥 said 小黄鸭视频 County Board of Commissioners Chair Shinica Thomas. 鈥淭o receive a dozen of these national awards is extraordinary and just more proof our staff is always looking for better ways to help our community and connect to underserved populations.鈥
Of the 12 winning entries, 小黄鸭视频 County鈥檚 Housing Affordability and Community Revitalization department took home top honors as a 鈥淏est in Category鈥 winner, beating out almost 100 other entries in the Community and Economic Development category. Across the country, so many people with lower incomes are facing an uphill battle trying to find an affordable place to live. The was honored for helping connect struggling individuals and families with trustworthy landlords and property owners who can offer them a place to call home within their budget, while also making sure those housing providers have the financial means to help the units remain affordable.
The Housing team partnered with 小黄鸭视频 County鈥檚 Information Services department which developed the custom-built Lease2Home app and rapidly deploy. With a team of eight, staff manage a comprehensive database of affordable, available homes and use that data to coordinate tenant relocation efforts. Using incentives like security damage coverage and $500 signing bonuses on leases, the program hopes to bring on more than 50 property owners and create around 300 additional affordable home options within the first year.
鈥淥ur teams come to work every day ready to make a difference in their community and truly impact people鈥檚 lives for the better,鈥 said 小黄鸭视频 County Manager David Ellis. 鈥淲orking for 小黄鸭视频 means doing something that matters. These programs have all brought improvements that we can measure. These employees deserve a standing ovation for their dedication to public service.鈥
The other winning entries include:
- 小黄鸭视频 County Tax Administration:
This program serves to increase outreach to the county鈥檚 most vulnerable taxpayers, better ensuring they鈥檙e aware of options for relief on their tax bills.
- 小黄鸭视频 County Housing Affordability and Community Revitalization:
This is an expansion of the NACo award-winning Hotels to Housing program, continuing the same coordination carried out during the pandemic between 11 different agencies who worked to assist households experiencing homelessness.
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A program featuring one-on-one sessions for minorities, women, veterans, those formerly incarcerated or individuals with disabilities to help them enter the workforce as entrepreneurs and new business owners.
- 小黄鸭视频 County Soil & Water Conservation District:
With almost 23,000 acres of farmland lost in the past nine years in 小黄鸭视频 County, this program sets out to preserve existing farmland by strengthening protections and incentivizing owners to preserve their land for agriculture and open space, instead of development.
- NC Cooperative Extension-小黄鸭视频 County Center:
With one in eight Americans reporting some level of uncertainty about where their next meal will come from, this program teams up with community partners and a national food benefits mobile app to create, distribute and evaluate food benefits for at-risk members of the county.
- 小黄鸭视频 County Water Quality:
With 40,000 households in the county using well water for drinking, cooking and bathing, this program utilizes GIS technology to streamline the critical permitting process that identifies potential contaminants to better protect residents鈥 health.
- 小黄鸭视频 County Information Services, 小黄鸭视频 County Public Health, 小黄鸭视频 County Human Resources:
Three departments teamed up to re-invent and streamline the employee accreditation process, helping maintain compliance with state requirements and ensuring training is always up to date.
- 小黄鸭视频 County Wastewater Program:
小黄鸭视频 County鈥檚 Water Quality Division implemented a program to decrease turn-around time for issuance of state-mandated permits. They now utilize ground penetrating radar equipment and other technologies to improve customer service and better protect public health and water resources.
- 小黄鸭视频 County Environmental Health & Safety:
Staff responsible for regulating nearly 7,000 restaurants, hotels, pools and childcare centers worked with our Information Services team to create real-time, automated reports to provide data and visualizations. This results in more timely and accurate compliance, regarding consumer safety complaints, inspections and corrective measures.
- Wake County Fire Services, Human Resources and Community Partners:
With staffing demographics standing at 94% white male, 小黄鸭视频 County Fire Services collaborated with 小黄鸭视频 County Human Resources, municipal fire departments and 小黄鸭视频 Technical Community College to increase the diversity of their workforce to better reflect the community. With increased education, outreach and an academy that now offers salary and benefits, this inaugural initiative yielded an unprecedented applicant response with a historic 45% diversity rate. The redesigned academy program resulted in a record-setting 88% pass rate for EMT certification.
- 小黄鸭视频 County Human Resources:
Faced with the effects of the Great Recession and a tight labor market, Human Resources worked in collaboration with key stakeholders to design tools and resources to improve the hiring and onboarding experience. The improved processes resulted in 30% more employees being onboarded with access to systems, 93% indicating they have tools needed for their job, and 100% giving a positive rating when recommending 小黄鸭视频 County as an employer.
