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 Jacqueline Edwards
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Each year the National Association of Counties (NACo) accepts applications for their Achievement Awards. The NACo Achievement Awards program seeks to recognize innovative county government programs across 18 different categories.
On Wednesday, August 24th, Maricopa County celebrated the 43 winners who received FY22 NACo Achievement Awards. The Department that received more awards than any other County department at a whopping 28% was…
THE MARICOPA COUNTY HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT!!!
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SUCCESS STORY
Chance Meeting Leads to Employment, Housing
Did you ever hear about a job fair or resource fair and wondered, does anyone ever really go to one and find a job or get help? That question was on Susan’s mind. She was having a hard time finding employment after being out of the workforce for a year and a half. Even though she had a lot of great work experience, she just couldn’t find the right opportunity. One day, Susan heard about the Tempe care Fair and she took a chance. She attended the event where she met Carter Ellis, a Workforce Development Coordinator.
Click the link below to see how Carter helped Susie through this chance meeting!
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FEATURES
Workday is Coming September 19
Have you heard??? Maricopa County is transitioning to new software called Workday on Monday, September 19, 2022.
The software is a human resources platform that will replace the tasks you’re currently doing in ADP, BenefitSolver, TheHUB, and NEOGOV. Workday will be something that staff and managers will be using regularly. For that reason, you are encouraged to seek out a training course based on your role at the County
Click the link below for SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS about the need to manually transfer performance goals, links to training and FAQs and what to do if you have a need to change your benefits during the transition to the new software.
 Introducing the HSD Learning Academy
The Learning Academy will feature five certifications that staff can achieve, those are Trauma Informed Care, Implicit Bias, Coaching, Family Centered Coaching tools, and Financial Empowerment. The level of certifications achieved will be dependent on the desired depth of proficiency in each area. Staff will learn in a cross-neighborhood environment that supports equitable and inclusive opportunities for professional and personal development. The Learning Academy is intentionally designed to approach client and family-centered coaching with a holistic lens. Read the full announcement here.
 Food Insecurity in the Community
The pandemic exacerbated food insecurity in our community. Residents expressed growing concerns about food costing more, its availability or lack thereof, and the accessibility of assistance programs. Food banks and pantries served as a critical food source for many Arizona families during this time. Maricopa County utilized ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funding to provide more than $3 million in aid that continues to support the operations of local food banks and food pantries serving our residents. The aid received by the Arizona Food Bank Network supported more than 54 agencies that provided more than 2,459,745 pounds of food, feeding more than 40,413 people.
Click the button below to learn more about how the County is using ARPA funds to support the operations of local food banks and food pantries.
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Arnoldo joined Maricopa County in 2014 and he currently serves as a Family Support Specialist with the Early Education Division of Maricopa County Human Services. Arnoldo’s role involves connecting families in need of support with available resources in the community. This involves building and maintaining a network of community agencies that provide a wide variety of services such as housing, clothing, and even transportation and staying in close communication with Head Start families.
Click the button below to learn more about Arnoldo.
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 Arnoldo Hernandez
Family Support Specialist
Early Education Division
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 POINTS OF PRIDE
Community Services Division
Back in December 2021, the Maricopa County Community Services Division applied for a new initiative called the COVID and Safety Net Innovation (CASI) Technical Assistance (TA) initiative. We were one of the few eligible entities selected. As a result, we have an amazing opportunity to work with BLH Technologies to continue advancing our case-management model. Working with our partners at the Department of Economic Security and our internal department of Workforce Development, our team is working towards renovating our approach from a transactional-model to a transformative-model that will make a greater impact to our clients. Throughout the year while working on our sessions, BLH Technologies saw that our team was trailblazing and decided to come film them in action to show the nation the great things that are happening here in the State of Arizona – another great accomplishment that Maricopa County has to be proud of.
For more Points of Pride from other Human Services neighborhoods, please visit the link below.
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DISTRICT 5 WATER DAYS RECOGNITION
Supervisor Steve Gallardo held “Water Days” for community members to cool off and connect to resources. To show his appreciation for the contributions of Human Services staff who contributed to the successful events, Supervisor Gallardo provided a plaque. Special thanks to the following staff members:
Workforce Development Division
Bea Armenta-Moder and Dawn Strecker
Early Education Division
Andrea Fray
Arnoldo Hernandez
Elvira Fimbres
Guadalupe Djahedi
Jatonn Gee
Lucia Cuevas
Rosa Rejon
Community Services Division
Angelica Penuelas
Heidi Hopkins
Maria Diaz
EXPRESSING GRATITUDE
Dear Headstart Family,
I want to express my gratitude for the headstart program and the family support specialists who have been a blessing to my family for the last 4 years and more.
Life before my son entered headstart was incredibly stressful. Becoming part of headstart gave us structure and peace of mind. I attribute our life successes in large part to headstart. We were able to become homeowners in 2020 and both Dad and I are ASU graduates as of this year.
I wish this program and the amazing people running it the absolute best and thank you all for your support.
Sincerely, Maribel (Ernesto’s Mom)
IN THE NEWS
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 Maricopa County Awards $6 Million to Support Food Bank Operations
Food banks across the county are receiving upgrades to their equipment and expanding service capacity.
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 Buy One Get One Camping Promotion Returns to County Parks
Starting October 1, the popular promotion returns that allows park visitors to receive one night free.
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Read more HSD news releases and media stories in our HSD In the News blog.
FEATURED VIDEO
Learn more about ARPA Funds to Fight Food Insecurity
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CALENDAR
Keep up-to-date on the latest happenings within the Human Services Department.
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 Visit the Bulletin Board to see flyers for activities that take place throughout the month.
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This email is intended for Maricopa County Human Services Department employees as an internal communication. Public release of information contained in this communication should be cleared with the Human Services Director or an Assistant Director. For questions on this or future editions of the HSD eNews, please email HSDNews@maricopa.gov. |
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