Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
ORANGE COUNTY <br />BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br />Meeting Date: April 15, 2008 <br />Action Agenda <br />Item No. ~ - ~ <br />SUBJECT: NCACC Outstanding County Program Awards Presentation <br />DEPARTMENT: County Manager PUBLIC HEARING: (YIN) No <br />ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT: <br />NCACC Press Release Laura Blackmon, 245-2300 <br />PURPOSE: To present the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners (NCACC) <br />Outstanding County Program Awards for Orange County's (1) Spanish Language Assessment <br />Tool and (2) Inspect Plus field computer initiative. <br />BACKGROUND: The North Carolina Association of County Commissioners (NCACC) <br />sponsors the Outstanding County Program Awards which honors counties for their support of <br />excellence. The intent of the award is to recognize programs that involve a uniquely innovative <br />process, solution or idea to address a county or multi jurisdictional issue and/or prevent a future <br />problem from developing. Awards are presented in three major areas -Public <br />Information/Participation, Human Services, and General Government, and the major criteria for <br />awards are: innovation, success, effort and difficulty, and collaboration. <br />Orange County has been notified that two County initiatives are award winners for 2007 in the <br />area of General Government. Representatives from the NCACC will attend the meeting to <br />acknowledge the programs and staff, including Shoshannah Smith and Marlyn Henriquez <br />Valeiko with the Office of Human Rights and Relations, for the Spanish Language Assessment <br />Tool, and Susan Mellott, Building Services Manager and Dan Bruce, Permit Systems Analyst, <br />for the Inspect Plus field computer initiative. An NCACC press release on the awards is <br />attached. <br />Highlights of Spanish Language Assessment Tool <br />In 2005, Orange County recognized that its Spanish-speaking population was nearing the, 5% or <br />1,000 residents threshold necessary to require access to services under Title VI of the Civil <br />Rights Act of 1964. According to a departmental survey, the County served an average of <br />20,640 Latinos per year. The purpose of the Spanish Assessment Tool is to further <br />accessibility of all County services to Spanish-speaking residents by helping assure that County <br />employees have sufficient knowledge of the language and culture of the Spanish-speaking <br />community to communicate effectively. <br />The project was designed over several years, and ultimately funded and established during the <br />period from March 2006-August 2006, using HUD grant monies. The total cost of development <br />and utilization of the tool was $10,000, which includes ongoing technical support from the <br />County's Spanish-language partner organization. Development involved collaboration among <br />