 LGBT Pride Month
The month of June was chosen for LGBT Pride Month to commemorate the Stonewall riots, which occurred at the end of June 1969. As a result, many pride events are held during this month to recognize the impact LGBT people have had in the world. Brenda Howard is known as the "Mother of Pride," for her work in coordinating the first LGBT Pride march, and she also originated the idea for a weeklong series of events around Pride Day, which became the genesis of the annual LGBT Pride celebrations that are now held around the world every June. Additionally, Howard, along with fellow LGBT rights activists Robert A. Martin (aka Donny the Punk) and L. Craig Schoonmaker, are credited with popularizing the word "Pride" to describe these festivities.
Two presidents of the United States have officially declared a Pride Month. First, President Bill Clinton declared June "Gay & Lesbian Pride Month" in 1999 and 2000. Then from 2009 to 2016, each year he was in office, President Barack Obama declared June LGBT Pride Month.
 June 23, 2019, members of the DHS LGBTQ Employee Resource Group were joined by Commissioner Tony Lourey and Assistant Commissioner Marie Zimmerman in the Twin Cities Pride 2019 Ashley Rukes GLBT Pride Parade. The group, along with special fluffy guests Lincoln, Dottie and Reggie, had a blast celebrating Pride Month and representing the department's ongoing effort to become a more inclusive workplace
 They came from afar to make Minnesota home. And once here, they helped make it a better place.
DHS honored nine individuals who came to the United States as refugees and have since made a “tremendous addition” to the state, according to Commissioner Tony Lourey.
The commissioner, along with Children and Family Services Deputy Assistant Commissioner Lisa Bayley and State Refugee Coordinator Rachele King, recently presented the Outstanding Refugee Awards at a ceremony at the Elmer L. Andersen Human Services Building to:
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Abdullahi Ali who decided early in life to use his talents to make life better for as many people as he could. He is doing just that as a community volunteer and case manager for Lakes & Prairies Community Action Partnership.
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Adan Ibrahim who has volunteered thousands of hours at the Franklin Learning Center in Hennepin County over the past decade to help people become U.S. citizens, including more than 100 students who passed their citizenship tests in the past two years.
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Vayong Moua whose “personal experience as a refugee informs his work and hope for a state that is more inclusive, that values the contribution of refugees and immigrants, and that builds on the assets of people of color and indigenous people,” according to his nomination.
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Bashir Omar who mentors youth in his community and serves as a cultural liaison for Faribault Public Schools. He teaches English through Faribault’s adult education program, organizes summer soccer leagues, provides community school programming and engages youth in environmental clean-up projects.
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Yane Sima who helps others thrive in the medical field as a volunteer at the International Institute of Minnesota in addition to completing her nursing assistant training program, earning an associate’s degree in nursing, and passing the nursing board exams while raising three young boys as a single mother.
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Jamal Ali who is a connector, creating innovative art and spaces to strengthen cultural awareness and understanding. He volunteers at the Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project.
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Tashitaa Tufaa who received the Entrepreneurship Award for his business acumen as the founder and CEO of Metropolitan Transportation Network and belief that immigrants play an important role in Minnesota’s economy.
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Mohamed Malim, who received the Young Leader Award, said, “For me, the word ‘refugee’ means people who go through a lot of challenges and who persevere.”
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Suud Olat, who was not present to accept his Young Leader Award, is a filmmaker and advocate whose work with the ONE Campaign supports girls’ education, raises awareness of the plight of refugees and works toward ending extreme poverty.
“Your success is part of our Minnesota fabric,” Lourey told the award winners.
Twenty-six DHS employees recently celebrated their completion of the L4 Leadership Development Program in Cohort 9, capping months of work and learning with presentations about their action learning projects and receiving graduation certificates. The ceremony was held Thursday, June 6, at the Elmer L. Andersen Human Services Building.
Commissioner Tony Lourey said he was pleased that Senior Management Team has supported the program since its inception in 2011, graduating 221 over nine years.
“L4 was specifically created to increase the bench strength of leadership at the department and assist our agency in our leadership development efforts to achieve sustained organizational effectiveness,” he said. “DHS leadership recognizes that potential leaders exist at all levels and in all corners of the department.”
Action learning is a problem-solving process that involves a small group working on a real problem and solution while focusing on learning as individuals and as a team. It is a way of learning by doing and encouraging “out of the box” thinking. In action learning, the learning is as important if not more important than, the successful solution of the problem. The L4 Action Learning Project teams and projects included:
Team Be the Change: Community Engagement in DHS Grant-Making
This team focused on ways to improve engagement with the community throughout the grant-making process, taking direction from the Strategic Plan and the Equity Policy. The ream developed a resource guide and an internal video titled “Community Engagement in Grant Making.”
- Jeshua Livstrom, Chief of Staff, Legal and Compliance Office
- Kathy Schwartz, Children and Family Services
- Amanda Stoa, Direct Care and Treatment
- Cassandra Stewart, Operations, Office of Inspector General
Team T3: Respectful Workplace and Discrimination Policy with External Stakeholders
In an effort to improve staff retention, this team focused on ways to address external partners’ activities under the Respectful Workplace Policy.
- Nadine Groven, Children and Family Services
- Melissa Launderville, Direct Care and Treatment
- Mikki Desque, Operations, Office of Strategy and Performance
- Jeremy Anderson, Direct Care and Treatment
- Dominique Jones, Community Supports
Team Too Legit to Quit: Differential Diagnosis: Methamphetamine versus Mental Illness
For people with serious mental illness and those with methamphetamine use disorder, receiving the correct diagnosis is critical. This team focused on the development of the Clinical Guide to Differential Diagnosis of Methamphetamine and Mental Illness (PDF) for clinicians.
- Charlotte McDonald, Children and Family Services
- Katherine Wurpts, Direct Care and Treatment
- Sheila Hunter, Operations, Office of Inspector General
- Kerry Gershone, Children and Family Services
- Amber Mata, Operations, Office of Inspector General
- Colt Blunt, Direct Care and Treatment
Team One DHS: Improve New Employee Onboarding Experiences
To address poor retention of newly hired staff, this group did a “Shark Tank” parody to highlight their ideas to improve employee onboarding.
- Keasha Boone, Operations, Office of Inspector General
- Wade Keller, Community Supports
- Melisa Baxter, Direct Care and Treatment
- Mary Dempsey, Direct Care and Treatment
- Colleen Bharadwaj, Chief of Staff, Legal and Compliance Office
- Brittany Lochner, Children and Family Services
Team The Sixth Sense: Pro Action Café Event: Building Relationships between MNIT and DHS
Following the 2011 consolidation of information technology staff into Minnesota IT Services, roles and expectations changed. This team held an event using methodology for hosting conversations to bring together DHS and MNIT staff to discuss creating a stronger culture of partnership.
- Marie Rose, Direct Care and Treatment
- Kayla Kimpling, Direct Care and Treatment
- Jennifer Droneck, Children and Family Services
- Nicole Juan, External Relations
- Eric Carter, Health Care
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Commissioner Tony Lourey welcomed this summer’s Executive Pathways interns to DHS and thanked their supervisors for participating in the program at an orientation held June 5. This year, the 24th year of this program, five administrations are hosting 11 interns. The focus of the program is to provide opportunities for students to explore a career in public service with DHS.
Through the program, graduate and undergraduate students majoring in public policy, public health, business, public administration, social work, law and other related fields have the opportunity to learn how public policy is developed and implemented in a large and complex government organization.
“Executive Pathways interns over the past 24 years have had the chance to be part of many policy decisions that impact Minnesotans' quality of life," Commissioner Lourey told the group.
“I have no doubt that you all will have an educational, inspirational and exciting summer learning about our programs, initiatives, strategies and partnerships,” he added. “At the end of the summer you will be counted among the alumni of this very popular and successful program that has a track record of attracting talented individuals to our DHS professional staff. Executive Pathways alums now work at nonprofits, at other state agencies, in counties and school districts, for the federal government and in private law practices.”
The program, sponsored by the Diversity and Inclusion unit within Human Resources, focuses on a diverse workforce by developing the talents of students as they prepare for professional employment.
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  Keynote speaker Jacob Day, a tribal policy specialist in the department’s Office of Indian Policy, summed up the essence of the recent Children and Family Services (CFS) World’s Fair: All about Community. “At DHS, we’re here to bring communities together, to support each other and to make Minnesota a better place.”
Sharing information about his language and culture as a member of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, he aired “We Shall Remain,” a video he described as an inspiration for his work.
More than 300 CFS staff spent the day listening and learning from each other about the administration’s divisions, employee resource groups, and training sessions to gain a greater appreciation for diverse communities, cultures and foods. The event, held at 444 Lafayette, included a variety of ethnic dishes for lunch.
At an open forum at the end of the World’s Fair, CFS Assistant Commissioner Nikki Farago closed up the day echoing the message with which Day started it. Today was all about connecting – connecting with the people we work with and the people we serve.
Interns hired for the summer through the Step Up Achieve and Right Track programs arrived for their first day of work at DHS on Monday, June 17. Step Up Achieve and Right Track connects DHS with the next generation of talented and diverse workers, provides critical job training and hands-on experience for young people who may not be granted the experience otherwise, and helps build a pipeline for a diverse workforce for future job openings.
The Step-Up Achieve summer internship program serves youth ages 16 to 21 in the city of Minneapolis. Right Track is a similar program serving youth in the city of St. Paul.
In the coming weeks, these interns will assist with a variety of administrative work, such as customer service, filing, scanning, faxing, data entry, research assistance and event planning. Some may also get involved with higher-level project work.
At an orientation they attended with their supervisors on June 17 at the Elmer L. Andersen Human Services Building, the interns got a warm welcome from Nancy Wallace, the DHS internship coordinator, and Hojae Kim, a graduate student at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management, who is interning in DHS Human Resources.
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Kinini Jegeno works in the Business Integration Division. He came to the United States as an asylee and worked for Hennepin County as a financial worker for more than seven years. He started at DHS as a help desk representative in 2014. He started at DHS as a help desk representative in 2014. Jegeno then took a job as a system modernization lead in 2017 in the Child Care Services Division. As the work of system modernization centralized for Children and Family Services, he transferred to the newly created Business Integration Division in 2018.
He enjoys developing a system of support and service that strives to make individuals and families self-sufficient by providing quality child care, stable housing and other necessary supports. Jegeno also likes to assist community members in completing and translating immigration forms and notices.
Licensed Practical Nurse (St. Peter, MN) - 31999
$19.57 - $27.88/hourly; $40,862 - $58,213/annually
MAY BE ELIGIBLE FOR A $2,500 HIRING INCENTIVE
Forensics Services is looking for talented Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN) to join our team on the St. Peter Regional Treatment Center campus which includes Minnesota Security Hospital, Transition Services, the Forensic Nursing Home and the Competency Restoration Program. The LPN provides entry-level practical nurse duties while providing quality therapeutic and person centered care to people with mental and physical health issues. In addition to great job and benefits, we provide ongoing training and continuing education opportunities to keep us on the leading edge of advancements in behavioral health care. If interested, we want to hear from you!
Registered Nurse (St. Peter, MN) - 31997
$28.76 - $42.59/hourly; $60,051 - $88,928/annually
MAY BE ELIGIBLE FOR A $2,500 HIRING INCENTIVE
Forensics Services is looking for talented Registered Nurses (RN) to join our team on the St. Peter Regional Treatment Center campus - which includes Minnesota Security Hospital, Transition Services, the Forensic Nursing Home and the Competency Restoration Program. The RN provides experienced, professional nursing care while assessing needs of clients, developing individualized plans, working with a multi-disciplinary team and delegates tasks to evaluate effectiveness of plans and care provided. In addition to great job and benefits, we provide ongoing training and continuing education opportunities to keep us on the leading edge of advancements in behavioral health care. If interested, we want to hear from you!
State Program Administrator Technical Specialist / Telephone Equipment Distribution Program Specialist (Mankato, MN) - 32393
$18.38 - $25.89/hourly; $38,377 - $54,058/annually
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services is looking for a State Program Administrator Technical Specialist (Telephone Equipment Distribution Program Specialist). In this role you are responsible for determining telecommunication needs for persons with a hearing loss, physically disability, speech disability and hearing and vision loss. Responsibilities include determining applicant’s eligibility, evaluating and assessing telecommunication equipment needs and assigning equipment to eligible applicants from the Telephone Equipment Distribution Program. If interested, we want to hear from you!
Medicaid Medical Director (St. Paul, MN) - 33749
$83.22 - $124.55/hourly
The Medicaid Medical Director position is a unique opportunity to provide medical leadership in the State of Minnesota. This position is the medical leader on medical and clinical matters related to the Medicaid and MinnesotaCare programs. This includes representing and speaking on behalf of the Department of Human Services (DHS). This involves interfacing with the DHS Commissioner's Office and leadership, external stakeholders, federal officials, the provider community, the media, and the Legislature. Together with the Behavioral Health Clinical Director, this position will work to address health disparities, health access and the integration of care across Minnesota, particularly in physical and behavioral health services in Medicaid, and new models of care. Responsibilities include working across DHS to address social determinants of health. If interested, we want to hear from you!
Behavioral Health Clinical Director - Human Services Manager 5 (St. Paul, MN) - 33824
$44.41 - $63.64/hourly
The Behavioral Health Clinical Director Position is a unique opportunity to provide clinical leadership in the State of Minnesota. This position is the behavioral health clinical leader on behavioral health matters related to the Medicaid and MinnesotaCare Programs. This includes representing and speaking on behalf of the Department of Human Services (DHS). This involves interfacing with the DHS Commissioner's Office and leadership, external stakeholders, federal officials, the provider community, the media, and the Legislature. Together with the Medicaid Medical Director this position will work to address health disparities, health access and the integration of care across Minnesota, particularly in physical and behavioral health services in Medicaid, and how models of care. Responsibilities include working across DHS to address social determinants of health. If interested, we want to hear from you!
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