Past honorees

2023

Leadership Excellence Awards

Fred Jarrett Leadership Excellence Award

Honors a department or division leader

Recipient: Danotra McBride, Director, Jail Health Services, Public Health - Seattle & King County

Throughout her 22-year career, Danotra McBride has been passionate about improving the health, safety, and well-being of people in the County’s care and custody. For the last four years, she has led Jail Health Services. Under her leadership, Jail Health has brought innovation and a laser focus to the opioid crisis by developing and maintaining a medically assisted treatment program to help people treat their addiction while in custody. She was instrumental in the King County Correctional Facility achieving reaccreditation recently for its healthcare services by the National Commission on Correctional Healthcare. Danotra is always looking for what can be improved, deeply values her staff, and implements measures that support the County’s equity and anti-racism work.

People Leader Award

Honors a leader below the department or division leadership level who directly manages staff

Recipient: Michael Bacnis, Accounts Receivable Supervisor, Finance Business and Operations Division, Department of Executive Services

In addition to managing daily operations for Accounts Receivable, Michael Bacnis has worked on high-impact projects. He assisted the Department of Public Defense with a rate adjustment for criminal defense services provided by the County, which provided relief to low-income clients. He has built a culture of innovation and problem-solving, and his teams consistently exceed expectations for delivering results. He led a team that identified some online payments were misdirected to a queue for manual processing and worked with Information Technology to reduce manual payments by 12 percent from the previous year.

Individual Contributor Award

Honors an individual contributor who does not directly manage staff

Recipient: Alicia Martinez, Prenatal to Five Social-Emotional Wellbeing Lead, Developmental Disabilities and Early Childhood Supports Division, Department of Community and Human Services

Alicia Martinez expanded access to Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health education and skills for hundreds of providers and caregivers who work with young children and their families across King County. She led a unique collaboration to create the Centering Relationships and Social Justice in Early Childhood certificate program that reduces barriers to access to high-quality Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health education. She has also grown and diversified one of the largest early childhood Reflective Consultation programs in the country that helps early childhood program staff improve the way they support the families and children they serve.

Innovation Award for Cost

Recipient: Department of Community and Human Services/Behavioral Health and Recovery Division & Finance and Compliance Services – Behavioral Health Medicaid Rate Increase

Project Team: Behavioral Health and Recovery Division: Isabel Jones, Karen Spoelman, Lindsay Lopes, Carol Jernigan, Deborah Stake, Ileana Janovich, Jamie Lee, and Sean Davis; Director’s Office: Kelly Rider, Christian Diaz, Den Villas, Reggie Buenafe, Michael Lu, Ryan Black, Albert Sze, Michael Della Santa, and Jennifer Anderson

Behavioral health providers have been struggling to attract and retain staff at a time when the County seeks to increase access to services and treatment. Working with the state, behavioral health agencies, and managed care organizations, the Behavioral Health Medicaid Rate Increase project team helped bring about a 15 percent rate increase in Medicaid payments to providers. This will result in a $30 million investment that allows providers to increase salaries and bring more stability to the behavioral health system.

Innovation Award for Service

Recipient: Department of Executive Services, King County Information Technology, and Executive Department – Downtown Customer Service Center

Project Team: Download a PDF to see the full project team.

With the closing of the King County Administration Building during the pandemic and a return to in-person customer service, a multi-department project team created a new Downtown Customer Service Center that provides services for six County agencies in a safe, welcoming, and accommodating space. Since its opening in April 2023, thousands of customers have accessed services at the center and rate it highly in customer satisfaction surveys, citing ease of completing a task and short wait times.

Innovation Award for People

Recipient: Department of Natural Resources and Parks – Recruitment Standards Project

Project Team: Tinh Tieu, Shawna Ousse-Parton, Christine Ynzunza, Mariko Conerly, Megan Kijewski, Divya Mathew, Jessica Fuqua, Patricia Jurgens, Rodney Dungo, Elizabeth Dunning, Jemima McMahon, Roxanne Malatesta, Susan Ng, Lisa Aweeka, Prakash Meloottu, Aryana Journee, Khanleshea Martin, Aaron Jeide, Angelia Remolana, Daniel Sherman, Helen David, Blake Bennett, Cindy Burch, Diana Eberly, Susanna Ruiz, Emiliya Makaryan, Lauren Johnson, Lorie Nick, Mark Workinger, Delores Venters, Steve Namkung, Isaac Good, Jamie Jensen-Young, William Herbert, Angela Asuncion, Calvin Rivers, Deena Prasad, Lakshmi Panikkar, Chanté Sims, Pamela Johnson, and Marla Brooks

Natural Resources and Parks was facing a high staff vacancy rate, and recruiters were running more than 300 hiring processes every year. To bring much-needed talent on board more efficiently, speedily, and equitably, the Recruitment Standards Project team developed a standardized recruitment process that decreased the average time to fill a position by 16 percent and greatly reduced the drop-off rate for BIPOC candidates from the time their application was received to an interview.

Innovation Award for Equity, Racial & Social Justice

Recipient: Department of Natural Resources and Parks/Water and Land Resources Division & Public Health – Seattle & King County/Environmental Health – Lead in Cookware Project

Project Team:Water and Land Resources: Dave Ward, Monica Ayers, Ashley Evans, Michell Mouton, and Thanh Truong; Environmental Health: Steve Whittaker, Katie Fellows, Yoni Rodriguez, Shar Sami, Linda Van Hooser, Matt Wilson, Roda Mohamed, Mohamed Ali, Fanaye Amsalu, Ashley Bullock, Hena Parveen, Sharon Cohen, and Candace Jackson; External Partners: Afghan Health Initiative, University of Washington, Toxic Free Future, and Joanna Grist

Approximately 70 percent of cases referred to the Hazardous Waste Program were attributed to lead exposure in refugee families from Afghanistan. The program identified aluminum cookware brought from Afghanistan as a potential source of lead exposure for these families. The Lead in Cookware project team distributed safer stainless-steel cookware to Afghan families, increased awareness of the dangers of lead exposure, helped bring about new state legislation to reduce lead in cookware, and is working to eliminate the availability of lead-containing cookware in online marketplaces.

Innovation Award for Climate and Environmental Stewardship

Recipient: Department of Local Services & Public Health – Seattle and King County – Fall City Waste Management System

Project Team:Local Services: John Taylor, Jeff Wilson, Jillian Scheibeck, Janel London, Lydia Reynolds Jones, and Victor Daggs; Public Health: Lynn Schneider; Other Contributors: Fall City Community Association, Fall City Metropolitan Parks District, and Jacobs Engineering

Fall City in unincorporated King County has been plagued with a wastewater problem for decades – negatively impacting businesses and threatening the health of people and the environment in the Snoqualmie River Valley. With strong community engagement, the Fall City Waste Management System team designed an innovative and cost-effective wastewater infrastructure for the Fall City Business District that is moving into the construction phase and will deliver measurable clean water and human health benefits.

2022

Leadership Excellence Awards

The Leadership Excellence Awards honor King County leaders who embody our Executive Branch values and drive for results that make King County better for employees and customers, and move us closer to our True North: Making King County a welcoming community where every person can thrive.

Fred Jarrett Award: Honors a department or division leader

Recipient: Ken Guy, Director, Finance and Business Operations Division, Department of Executive Services

Ken Guy has served as director of the Finance and Business Operations Division for more than 18 years, but he started as an intern at the county in the early 1980s. He was an early adopter of Lean and one of the first at King County to bring a continuous improvement specialist into his team. Watch the video to learn how Ken has used a Best-Run Government approach to improve the efficiency of the county’s procurement process; increase opportunities for small businesses and minority- and women-owned businesses to contract with the county; and serve as a diligent and reliable partner to colleagues and community.

People Leader Award: Honors a leader below the department or division leadership level who directly manages staff

Recipient: Bing Subelbia, Assistant Operations Manager, Parks Division, Department of Natural Resources and Parks

Bing Subelbia oversees the Parks Beautification Program, part of King County’s Jobs and Housing Program that connects people experiencing homelessness to employment, subsidized housing, and career services. With her leadership, Parks hired 27 people experiencing homelessness, and many have secured stable housing. Watch the video to learn how Bing’s compassionate leadership has changed the lives of participants in the program and brought a positive shift in how her team views people experiencing homelessness.

Individual Contributor Award: Honors an individual contributor who does not directly manage staff

Recipient: Angela Toussaint, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Manager, Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention

Angela Toussaint developed the Equity, Racial, and Social Justice program to help address the impacts of systemic racism on the Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention’s employees and the communities they serve. As King County’s first Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Manager, she led a Leadership Development Project that emphasizes equity fundamentals and seeks to increase the number and diversity of candidates for staff positions in the department. Watch the video to learn how Angela has improved workplace culture and inspired her colleagues to make the department a more equitable workplace.

Innovation Awards

These awards honor department teams whose projects, improvements, and ingenuity deliver exceptional, measurable results. “We solve problems” and “We drive for results” are core values at King County, and these award recipients met challenges in creative and impactful ways.

Innovation Award for Cost

Recipient: Department of Executive Services/Office of Emergency Management – FEMA Public Assistance Program Cost Reimbursement

Project Team: Office of Emergency Management: Alysha Kaplan and Celia Taylor; Finance Teams: Public Health – Seattle and King County, Department of Community and Human Services, Facilities Management Division, and other King County agencies; Finance and Business Operations Division; Office of Performance, Strategy and Budget

The FEMA Public Assistance Program Cost Reimbursement Team is helping King County recover $300 million in costs related to its COVID response. Watch the video to learn how getting FEMA reimbursement for these unanticipated and unbudgeted expenses allows the county to preserve other funding sources for expenses and programs not eligible for reimbursement.

Innovation Award for Service

Recipient: Department of Executive Services/Finance and Business Operations Division – Property Tax Foreclosure Avoidance Process

Project Team: Nanci Lambert, Laura Wilson, and Lori Souder

Each year, the Foreclosure Avoidance Unit works through thousands of properties that are subject to foreclosure for unpaid property taxes, with about 100 parcels going to auction. Watch the video to learn how the unit turned a highly stressful, adversarial process into an approachable conversation that focuses on helping taxpayers resolve their tax delinquencies and maintain their properties. The result: In 2022, only 12 parcels went to auction, and none were owner-occupied.

Innovation Award for People

Recipient: Department of Human Resources – Gender Inclusion in the Workplace

Project Team: Department of Human Resources Director’s Office, Policy, Learning and Development, Operations, and Workforce Equity teams; King County Executive’s Office; Facilities Management Division; Business Resource Center; and transgender and gender diverse employee-advocates

King County employee engagement surveys found that gender diverse employees felt less engaged, less safe, less well-being, and less belonging compared to all employees. Watch the video to learn how the Department of Human Resources led a multi-pronged approach to bring about changes in policy, training, processes, and facilities to create a more respectful, supportive, and welcoming environment for gender expansive people.

Innovation Award for Equity and Social Justice

Recipient: Director’s Office, Department of Local Services – Participatory Budgeting Project

Project Team: John Taylor, David Daw, Jillian Scheibeck, Brent Champaco, Cheryl Binetti, Gloria Briggs, Anna Clemenger, John Miller, Jesse Kent, GarMin Chan, Hugo Garcia, Anjilee Dodge, Michael Morales, Danielle de Clercq, Marissa Alegria, Bong StoDomingo, Participatory Budgeting Project consultants, and others from the Department of Natural Resources and Parks, Roads, Metro Transit, and Office of Equity, Racial and Social Justice

The Department of Local Services used a participatory budgeting process that allowed five urban communities in unincorporated King County to decide which projects would most benefit their neighborhoods, how government funds should be allocated to support them, and how the projects were managed. Watch the video to learn how community engagement and inclusion resulted in communities having more say in how government serves them.

Innovation Award for Climate and Environmental Stewardship

Recipient: Department of Natural Resources and Parks/Water and Land Resources Division – Chinook Wind Project/Mitigation Reserve Program

Project Team: Michael Murphy, Megan Webb, Anne-Gigi Chan, Laird O'Rollins, Scott Muchard, Mason Bowles, Nathan Brown; King County Management: Christie True, Mark Isaacson, Josh Baldi, Joan Lee; Prosecuting Attorney’s Office; Other support staff: Rachel Vaicunas, Christina Olivares, Kevin Ward, Kay Kitamura, Edna Isaacs, Jon Hansen, Will Mansfield, Gary Blanchard, Brad Schabert, Lori King, Becky Petersen, Darren Greve, King County Mitigation Reserves Program Interagency Review Team, Mike Perfetti (City of Tukwila), and many others

Over the last 150 years, 97% of the wetland areas in the Duwamish River estuary have been lost. In 2015, King County purchased nearly six acres along the Duwamish River called Chinook Wind. Watch the video to learn how the Water and Land Resources Division, with funding from the Mitigation Reserves Program, restored Chinook Wind to a wetland habitat that supports the survival of salmon and provides access to recreational opportunities to residents of a historically underserved area.

2021

Leadership Excellence Awards

Fred Jarrett Award: Honors a department or division leader

Recipient: Jennifer Hills, Director of the Office of Risk Management, Department of Executive Services

People Leader Award: Honors a leader below the department or division leadership level who directly manages staff

Recipient: Hedda McClendon, COVID Emergency Services Director, Department of Community and Human Services

Individual Contributor Award: Honors an individual contributor who does not directly manage staff

Recipient: Carolina Johnson, Data Asset and Technical Manager, Department of Community and Human Services

Innovation Awards

Innovation Award for Cost

Recipient: Department of Executive Services/Business and Finance Operations/Procurement and Payables Section – Strategic Sourcing Program

Project Team: Dominic Palo, Alex Clark, Nick Baltes, David Malone

Innovation Award for Service

Recipient: Department of Community and Human Services/Developmental Disabilities and Early Childhood Supports Division – Refugee Resettlement Hotel

Project Teams: Click here to see team members

Innovation Award for People

Recipient: Department of Executive Services/Fleet Services – Apprenticeship Program

Project Team: Heavy Duty Technicians: Roger Brady, Paul Brown, Dick Hughes, Dana Stacks, Jeff Van Derveer; Apprentices: Michael Domiquel, Mason Keselburg, Christina “Tina” Taylor; Union: Tommy Hunt, Shana Peschek; Washington State Department of Labor & Industries: Sandra Husband; Fleet Leadership: Jennifer Lindwall, Chris Gavigan, Cindy Kittleson-Walker, Lynn Walters, Isaac Wisdom

Innovation Award for Equity and Social Justice

Recipient: Department of Public Health/Environmental Health Services Division – Box Fan Filter Distribution Project

Project Team: Environmental Health Services Division: Shirlee Tan, Khanh Ho, Addison Houston, Rachele Hurt, Sinang Lee, Roda Mohamed, Fanaye Amsalu, Ayantu Hajikadir, Julie West, and Brad Kramer; Partners: Department of Natural Resources and Parks, Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, Washington State Department of Health, and University of Washington

Innovation Award for Sustainability

Recipient: Department of Natural Resources and Parks/Water and Land Resources Division – Lones Levee Setback and Floodplain Restoration Project

Project Team: Dan Eastman, Chris Ewing, Todd Hurley, Mason Bowles, Mike Thai, Jon Hansen, Josh Kahan, Suzanna Smith, Will Mansfield, Nathan Brown, Cynthia Saleh, Sophie Brooks, Cody Toal, Ashley Gould, Paul Adler, Amanda Hubbard, Jessica Alvarado, Andrea Plischke, JoAnn Dulan, Tammy Merritt, Ted Sullivan, Joan Lee, Jon Hansen

2020

Leadership Excellence Awards

Fred Jarrett Award: Honors a department or division leader

Honoree: John Diaz, Director, Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention

People Leader Award: Honors a leader below the department or division leadership level who directly manages staff

Honoree: Matt Canady, Transit Chief, Metro/Transit Facilities

Individual Contributor Award: Honors an individual contributor who does not directly manage staff

Honoree: Cecelia Hayes, Equity, Social Justice and Engagement, Senior Practitioner, Department of Executive Services

Innovation Awards

Innovation Award for Cost

Honoree: Department of Executive Services/Office of Risk Management – Lower Duwamish Settlement

Project Team: Jennifer Hills, Department of Executive Services; Kevin Wright, Prosecuting Attorney’s Office

Innovation Award for Service

Honoree: Departments of Public Health - Seattle and King County, Community and Human Services, Metro Transit, and Executive Services – Isolation and Quarantine, Shelter De-intensification, and Transportation for Pandemic Response

Special Recognition: Department of Executive Services/Facilities Management Division and Office of Emergency Management

Project Teams: Click here to see team members

Innovation Award for People

Honoree: Department of Human Resources/Career and Culture – Workplace Mental Health

Project Team: Brooke Bascom, Heather Steffensen, Janna Wilson, Jena Scott, Karla Clark, Mary Norman, Megan Jourdan, Michele Ritala, and Shawna Johnson

Innovation Award for Equity and Social Justice

Honoree: Department of Public Health - Seattle & King County – Community Mitigation and Recovery Team

Project Team: Click here to see team members.

Innovation Award for Sustainability

Honoree: Department of Natural Resources and Parks/Wastewater Treatment Division – South Wastewater Treatment Plant Biogas System Optimization

Project Team: Instrumentation & Electrical, Mechanical, Day Operations, Shift Operations, Process, Engineering, Construction Management, Safety, Facilities Inspection & Project Management

2019

Leadership Excellence Awards

Fred Jarrett Award: Honors a department or division leader

Honoree: Caroline Whalen, Director, Department of Executive Services

People Leader Award: Honors a leader below the department or division leadership level who directly manages staff

Honoree: Alex Ebrahimi, Coordinated for All (CEA) Housing Referrals Supervisor, Department of Community and Human Services

Individual Contributor Award: Honors an individual contributor who does not directly manage staff

Honoree: Michelle Sarju, Project/Program Manager, Public Health

Innovation Awards

Innovation Award for People

Honoree: Department of Community and Human Services – Recruitment and Hiring Initiative

Project Team: Elizabeth Causby-Miles, Susan Churchill, Annette Coleman, Bridget Tibbs, Khanh Hang, and Elena Romani

Innovation Award for Cost

Honoree: Department of Executive Services/Facilities Management Division – Franchise Project

Project Team: Terri Hansen, David Hackett, Anthony Wright, and Cristina Gonzalez

Innovation Award for Service

Honoree: Department of Human Resources – Automation of Verification of Employment

Project Team: Tracey Dang, Ampalavanar Mohanakumar, Grey Lewis, Pam Bell, Heather Cory, and Michael Strutynski

Innovation Award for Equity and Social Justice

Honoree: Metro Transit – Mobility Framework

Project Team: Tessa McClellan, De’Sean Quinn, Mary Bourguignon, Tristan Cook, Brian Van Abbema, Gary Prince, and Carrie Lee

Innovation Award for Sustainability

Honoree: Metro Transit/Mobility Division – Via to Transit

Project Team: Daniel Rowe, David Eldred, Jenifer Merkel, Ashley Dunn, Shelby Cramer, Torie Rynning, Pierce Canser, Jeremy Waldner, Brian Van Abbema, and Casey (Catherine) Gifford

2018

Cost

The Fleet Division’s field service mechanics saved 124 hours in travel time in the first six months of 2018 by adding diagnostic software to field service computers.

Service

Metro Transit decreased missed trips due to “no operator” by nearly 70% compared with the previous year.

People

Public Health’s part-time employment pilot program in the Community Health Services division increased attendance in 83 percent of employees, with an overall 60 percent reduction in use of sick leave or unpaid leave.

Equity and Social Justice

Best Starts for Kids, a collaboration between DCHS and Public Health, reduced barriers to funding for community-based service providers, enhancing equity in service delivery.

Sustainability

In 2018, the Department of Natural Resources and Parks’ North Utilities Maintenance Shop became the first county project to meet net-zero energy status.