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Trailblazing: Awards

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Award: GFOA's Distinguished Budget Presentation Award For the fourth year in a row, San Mateo County has been honored with the GFOA award..The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) is a non-profit professional association serving 14,000 government finance professionals throughout North America. The GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Awards Program is the only national awards program in governmental budgeting. San Mateo County received the GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for its budget . The award represents a significant achievement and reflects the commitment of the governing body and staff to meet the highest principles of government budgeting. In order to receive the budget award, the entity had to satisfy nationally recognized guidelines for effective budget presentation. The guidelines are designed to assess how well the budget serves as:      A policy document      A financial plan      An operations guide      A communications device Since the inception of the GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Awards Program in 1984, approximately 900 entities have received the Award. Award recipients have pioneered efforts to improve the quality of budgeting and provide an excellent example for other governments throughout North America.   Award:San Mateo County Pharmaceutical Disposal Program The California State Association of Counties awards honorable mention to San Mateo County's Pharmaceutical Disposal Program in its 2007 Challenge Awards. The program is an environmentally friendly alternative to flushing medicines. The program was created to find an appropriate way to dispose of medicines so that they do not harm wildlife, end up in the hands of youth who might use them improperly, or end up in the hands of senior citizens who might confuse the medicines. This program is convenient to the public with minimal costs, and fulfills all federal requirements concerning this issue. Pharmaceutical disposal receptacles were placed at police departments and at the Sheriff's Office, where anyone can place unwanted medicines in the bins. The US Environmental Protection Agency has praised the program for its efficiency, simplicity and apparent uniqueness on a national level. Award: San Mateo County Wins Gold at State Fair San Mateo County’s 2007 State Fair exhibit – San Mateo County: The Green Leader – is an entirely homegrown effort. Based on a dollhouse model, San Mateo County's exhibit showcased “green” building by creating a model home filled with salvaged, sustainable and recycled materials. Part of the home is built from materials salvaged from the County’s former juvenile hall, which is currently being carefully deconstructed. A cabinet from a team member’s garage now graces the home’s kitchen. The sink was purchased at nominal cost from a local company that recovers items that would otherwise go to landfills. Even an aging fence no longer needed in a team member’s backyard has been incorporated into the layout.       The sink was purchased at nominal cost from a local company that recovers items that would otherwise go to landfills. Even an aging fence no longer needed in a team member’s backyard has been incorporated into the layout.   Please visit the website for more information.   Award: San Mateo County Awarded for Technology Innovations The the California Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems (CAPH) has award San Mateo Medical Center for its innovative approach in helping youths enrolled in a pilot project to manage their asthma. The youths are given cell phones to enter information daily about their asthma symptoms in response to questions presented in either English or Spanish on the cell phone. The software provides immediate feedback, indicating whether the patient is in a red, yellow, or green zone depending on risk, and suggests recommended next steps. The data is then automatically sent to an asthma case manager at the Medical Center who can then call patients who need urgent attention. The information that the patients enter into their cell phones is also up-loaded into a patient registry, which allows Medical Center staff to see changes in the patients’ conditions over time and make adjustments in medications or frequency of clinic visits.   The Health Care Interpreter Network (HCIN), another San Mateo Medical Center project, has also won an award. HCIN allows doctors and nurses to communicate with non-English speaking patients in their native language through a remote “video interpreter”. Using a video screen, staff can locate an interpreter in several languages in a matter of seconds.   Each year, CAPH presents “Management Excellence Awards” to member organizations that display leadership in developing innovative solutions to important clinical, operational and community health issues. Press Release (pdf)   Award: San Mateo County Wins Governor's Environmental And Economic Leadership Awards San Mateo County's RecycleWorks was awarded the Governor's Environmental and Economic Leadership Awards. RecycleWorks' KIDS, a website that teaches the importance of reducing the impact to our natural resources, was honored the State of California's highest and most prestigious environmental award. The website aims at teaching 3rd to 6th grade students, in a "kid-friendly" manner, environmental issues as well as ways to help.   http://www.recycleworks.org/kids/index.html Information on award (pdf) Press Release   Award: San Mateo County Brings Home the Silver and the Superintendent's Award! San Mateo County was awarded a silver medal award for the California Counties exhibit at the 2006 California State Fair. San Mateo County’s 2006 State Fair exhibit was also awarded the Superintendent’s Award recognizing the best exhibits created exclusively with county participation. Reflecting the County’s sesquicentennial celebration, the County’s exhibit highlights County agriculture and takes visitors on a tour of the County’s heroes from the lumber and rail days of the Woodside Store to today’s biotechnology industry. The exhibit also notes the links among the hospitality, farming and fishing sectors and the county’s growing reputation as a culinary destination. Board Memo Press Release Website Award: Business Insurance Honors Paul Hackleman as the 2006 Benefit Manager of the Year Paul Hackleman's implementation of health risk reduction programs for the County, arranging for a detailed analysis of the county's retiree health liabilities, paving the way for benefit plan changes with labor organizations, published three books on how the approach to public sector benefits management needs to evolve and grow, sharing his knowledge with other public-sector employers, as well as other numerous accomplishments spanning over 30 years of service helped Business Insurance to select him as 2006 Benefit Manager of the Year.   About the award Article   Award: US Environmental Agency Selects San Mateo County 2006 Environmental Achievement Award Recipient San Mateo County was selected as one of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2006 Environmental Achievement Award winners. The Green Dollhouse Project was a collaborative effort to introduce and inspire the idea of green buildings to the public. The dollhouses demonstrate imaginative uses of green building principles: energy efficiency, water conservation, healthier building materials and other sustainable practices, which can be applied to everyday homes. Playful, artful, as well as practical, design professionals and design students created dollhouses which can be seen at www.greendollhouse.org   The green dollhouses are currently on exhibit at the CalEPA building in Sacramento and will then travel to the Brooklyn Children's Museum in NY. Their final stop will be a return visit to the Coyote Point Museum in San Mateo County in the fall.                                                                                   Photography by Emily Hagopian   Award:San Mateo County Garners National Council on Disability Leadership Award The National Council on Disability (NCD) presented San Mateo County with the National Council on Disability Leadership Award in appreciation of outstanding contributions to the improvement of disability policy in the United States . The presentation was made on October 7, 2005 , during the annual San Mateo County People Who Care Awards Dinner, honoring organizations and individuals who strive to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities. Press Release     Award: San Mateo County selected as 100 Best Communities for Young People America ’s Promise, a national alliance of over 400 national partners including corporations, foundations, and youth-serving organizations awarded San Mateo County as one of the 100 Best Communities for Young People.The winning communities - ranging from small towns to urban neighborhoods across America - are celebrated for their commitment to provide healthy, safe and caring environments for young people. San Mateo County and the other winners were chosen by a distinguished selection panel of civic, business and nonprofit leaders, including United Way of America President Brian Gallagher, U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue, former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala, baseball great Cal Ripken Jr. and former Denver mayor Wellington Webb.   Press Release www.americaspromise.org Award: California State Fair Strolling Down A Country Road San Mateo County’s entry to the 2005 California State Fair focused on exhibiting our county’s friendly environment. Along with our mural, “The Place Where We Live,” showcasing San Mateo County’s coastside and bayside, three colorful rural mailboxes and a garden cart were nestled among flowerpots offering an abundance of brochures and recipe cards for passersby to take. This year’s effort received the Bronze Award.   Award: 9-1-1 Dispatcher Wins Governors Award for Excellence  On April 19, 2005 at the Annual Law Enforcement Legislative Day, San Mateo County 9-1-1 Dispatcher Deborah McGlynn will be awarded the prestigious Governor's Award for Excellence in Peace Officer Training by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Ms. McGlynn is the first non-sworn public safety employee to be selected for this award in the history of the Commission on Peace Officers Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.). The Governor's Awards for Excellence is a highly competitive annual award program that recognizes excellence, innovation, and impact upon Law Enforcement training in the State of California. This year there were 39 nominations in three award categories: Individual Achievement, Lifetime Achievement and Organizational Achievement. Press Release   Award: GFOA's Distinguished Budget Presentation Award The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) is a non-profit professional association serving 14,000 government finance professionals throughout North America. The GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Awards Program is the only national awards program in governmental budgeting. San Mateo County received the GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for its budget . The award represents a significant achievement and reflects the commitment of the governing body and staff to meet the highest principles of government budgeting. In order to receive the budget award, the entity had to satisfy nationally recognized guidelines for effective budget presentation. The guidelines are designed to assess how well the budget serves as:      A policy document      A financial plan      An operations guide      A communications device Since the inception of the GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Awards Program in 1984, approximately 900 entities have received the Award. Award recipients have pioneered efforts to improve the quality of budgeting and provide an excellent example for other governments throughout North America.   Award: CSAC's 2004 Challenge Awards Building for the Future: Sustainable Building Policy Like many counties, San Mateo County was faced with the impacts associated with growing pains: eroding natural resources, along with increased air and water pollution from development and construction. The County Board of Supervisors developed a “green” building policy designed to integrate building materials and methods that promote environmental quality, economic vitality and social benefits through the construction and operation of new buildings. First major successes were the construction of the San Mateo County Crime Lab and the $125 million Youth Services Center. Cost to implement the program was a modest $25,000 in staff time and resources. Building “green” is proving to be a best-practices use of resources that creates buildings for a healthier environment in San Mateo County.   Award: CSAC's 2004 Challenge Awards Community Law Night Since 1994, San Mateo County Courts have experienced a tremendous increase in the number of self-represented litigants. Citizens who represent themselves in court face many obstacles, not the least of which is understanding the legal system and the lack of support services. A coalition of legal groups, including the San Mateo County Bar Association, co-sponsored a Community Law Night, designed to educate residents and small business owners of their rights and responsibilities as litigants. Participants had access to mini-consultations, lectures in key areas of law, and were able to talk with more than 50 volunteer attorneys. The coalition provided $30,000 of in-kind attorney time while splitting a $3,000 nominal cost in various expenses. It was money well spent, as self-represented litigants enter court armed with correct information and are better prepared, which helps the judicial process move more quickly.   Award: CSAC's 2004 Challenge Awards Fatherhood Collaborative San Mateo County recognized that the rise of father-absence in the home can have a profound impact on children. Scores of studies have documented the positive effects on children of involved fathers, yet other children who have no such contact are five times more likely to live in poverty and twice as likely to drop out of school and fall into drug and alcohol abuse. Based on these facts, the county in 1999 created the Fatherhood Collaborative, a group of over 50 community-based organizations charged with promoting relational ties between children and fathers through educational, legal and emotional services. As a result, many county services now focus on the father’s importance in the home, and for the first time in county history, the Board of Supervisors designated a week in June as Fatherhood Awareness Week.   Award: CSAC's 2004 Challenge Awards Tower House Receiving Home In May 2001, the San Mateo County Children’s Receiving Home experienced an armed intruder looking for a resident who, fortunately, was no longer at the shelter. While only a single incident, it called attention to the growing complexity and challenge of providing adult-supervised residence for at-risk youth in San Mateo County. The situation highlighted the need for a second receiving home with a higher degree of adult oversight. The solution was Tower House, an eight-bed receiving home created in cooperation with the county and Moss Beach Homes. Tower House places children in a well-supervised, pro-family environment that makes sure children and families remain connected to their neighborhoods. In 2003, the program served 34 youth, 80 percent of whom were subsequently placed into less restrictive, homelike environments.   Award: CSAC's 2004 Challenge Awards Juvenile Assessment and Referral Center Red tape and onerous confidentiality rules make it difficult for at-risk youth to not only access much-needed support services, but also often result in incomplete assessments that lead to misplaced incarceration. Co-sponsored by a variety of San Mateo County mental health advocates, the Juvenile Assessment and Referral Center is designed to serve young people with emotional and behavioral issues or other special needs, as well as juveniles in the justice system. Therapists, probation officers and community workers fill the gap in services to youth with delinquent and mental health issues. Funded by a $2.3 million federal grant, the program is showing promise: 90 percent of minors have completed the program without re-offending, and no minors released with a mandated court date have re-offended prior to arraignment — vital first steps in the effort for juvenile offenders to break the delinquency cycle and return to their home communities as productive citizens.