Howard County Government Announces ‘Employee of the Year’

ELLICOTT CITY, Md., Sept. 27 -- Howard County issued the following news release:

Howard County Government's 2013 Employee Recognition Winners were honored Friday at a ceremony at the Ten Oaks Ballroom. The highest distinction went to Vidia Dhanraj of the Department of Citizen Services who was named Howard County's "Employee of the Year." As Coordinator of Community Partnerships, Dhanraj supports the efforts of the Board to Promote Self-Sufficiency to encourage economic stability and reduce the incidence of poverty for individuals and families in Howard County. She has also played an integral part in coordinating and shepherding from concept to reality various County initiatives, such as the Plan to End Homelessness. As the Department of Citizen Services worked to create a "coordinated system" to integrate services provided by various non-profit and government agencies, Dhanraj took on the task of bringing agencies together, breaking down barriers to build closer working relationships, and developing the necessary processes to make it all work. Since its "soft launch" in September of 2012, she has continued to strengthen and expand the coordinated system. Although Howard County has not ended homelessness, we have come a very long way in the past year, due in large part to Dhanraj's tireless stewardship in moving this initiative forward.

Other employee awards and recipients included:

Great Idea Award -

1st Place: PFC Terrence Benn, Police Department, developed the Howard County Police Bike Registry System with the help of County IT personnel. PFC Benn had noticed a trend in bicycle thefts in the County and an inability for recovered bicycles to be returned to their owners. This System allows County's residents to register their bicycles with the Police Department for free and provides Officers with a valuable tool to determine if a bicycle is stolen or to track down the owner of a recovered bicycle.

2nd Place: Lauren Vandergrift and David Murray, Office of Risk Management, and Eytan Gess and Connie Macek, Department of Technology and Communication Services, together redeveloped Risk Management's Sharepoint system to create an all-inclusive program that incorporates all the details of the County's property, vehicle and liability claims, and significantly streamlines the claim processing procedures within the Office of Risk Management.

Unsung Hero Award -

1st Place: Victoria Coleman, Victim/Witness Advocate, found herself picking up the slack of her unit head's workload when he/she went on medical leave in April, handling their adult, circuit court cases in addition to her own juvenile caseload. With her expanded workload came Coleman's first-ever homicide case this year. In this high-profile case, the victim's college-age daughter was (and remains) in a particularly fragile psychological and physical state. Coleman made it her round-the-clock priority to make sure this grieving girl was treated with the utmost dignity, care and respect. Subsequent to the trial and as the case approaches sentencing, she is still communicating with the young woman and assisting her in finding much-needed counseling.

2nd Place: Judy Miller, Office on Aging, is the facilitator of Kindred Spirits, a social club for individuals with a medically diagnosed memory disorder. Miller has an unparalleled level of care and compassion for its members, connecting with each one and providing them all with a space to feel at home and comfortable with their diagnosis. Her behind the scenes conversations with caregivers and family members, offering solutions and a listening ear, make her an invaluable member of the program.

Green Initiative Award -

1st Place: Department of Recreation & Parks, Natural Resources Division and the Office of Environmental Sustainability, together applied for and were awarded the Governor's Stream Challenge Grant, securing the County's ability to expand our tree planting opportunities through 2015. With the funding, the Offices designed and implemented a new program, "Students Branching Out," as well as utilized the grant to mitigate the devastating effects the Emerald Ash Borer has had on our Ash forests.

2nd Place: Pilot Compost Team, Department of Public Works, Bureau of Environmental Services, oversaw the grading and assembly of the County's Pilot Composting Facility. The facility was constructed during fiscal year and collects curbside yard trim and food scraps from Elkridge residents and turns it into compost and mulch. Team members also, and on their own time, trained for certification tests and learned how to most effectively manufacture desirable products. With the facility operating smoothly, the Bureau will be expanding to a second composting collection area this fall.

Mentoring Award - Laurie Hunter, Department of Citizen Services, mentored two work-study interns from Reservoir High School'sDepartment of Special Education this past school year. Hunter worked to keep the students on task, challenging them with new skill sets and incorporated their teacher's goals for social, educational and vocational skill sets into the jobs required of them in the kitchen and lunch room. She also mentored students with disabilities from Howard Community College, a student from the Applications & Research Laboratory and summer students from a local church. In addition to being a positive role model, Hunter says her biggest reward is watching these students be successful in potential career opportunities, expand their confidence in a supportive setting and have an increased pride in their work.

Leadership Award - Angela Price, Department of Finance, is a very intelligent leader who manages multiple processes, tasks and people. Serving as Bureau Chief and also Division Chief of Financial Reporting, she has a wealth of knowledge about past events and transactions, and her strong SAP skills are an asset in teaching others how to work more effectively in SAP. Although much is to be expected from Bureau Chiefs, she continually goes above and beyond by "leading by example" and is a true "hands-on" leader.

Customer Service Awards:

* Terry Reider, Office of Human Resources (1st Place - Internal)

* Megan Haupt, Police Department (2nd Place - Internal)

* Mary Campbell, Office of Human Rights (1st Place - Public)

* Dominic Watkins, Department of Recreation & Parks, North Laurel Community Center (2nd Place - Public)

Customer Service Team Awards -

* Department of Planning and Zoning Comprehensive Zoning Team (Internal) - Laura Boone, Cindy Hamilton, John Hartner, Lisa Hill, Doug Kampe, Zan Koldeway, Bob Lalush and Joy Levy.

* State's Attorney's Office, Victim Witness Unit (Public) - Erica Carpio, Victoria Coleman, Chelsea Cross, Shirley Harbin, Rosemary Miller and Kim Vasco.

In addition, the County for the first time ever, acknowledgment a trio of employees who each reached 45 years of service with Howard County Government. These employees are Joan Cook of the Police Department, Lieutenant Carroll Roles of the Sherrif's Office and Harry Zellmer, Jr., of the Department of Public Works

CC AutoTriage9as-130928-30FurigayJane-4503618 30FurigayJane