Video Message from Bea
Click to watch Bea's video message.
As the Home and Community Living Administration, we have a lot of things we can learn from one another and many strengths to build upon.
Click here to read the transcript of Bea's message.
WA Cares Expands Provider Registration and Contracting
Soon, the WA Cares Fund will be responsible for registering providers for its 19 approved services and supports. DSHS is tasked with registering providers that meet specific minimum qualifications and operational standards. The Long-Term Services and Supports Commission approved those minimum qualifications, which will be documented in the WA Cares rules and client service contracts. Providers will be required to submit an application, which the WA Cares team will review and decide whether to approve.
As part of registration, qualified providers will have a contract through HCLA or one of the state's AAAs, depending on their service type and regional service areas. WA Cares providers will not be obligated to serve an AAA’s entire region but may identify a specific county or counties in which they will be providing services. Providers that contract with AAAs can also contract with HCLA to provide statewide services. HCLA will also be responsible for partnering with tribal nations and contracting with tribal providers.
Here’s how HCLA and the AAAs will divide contracting responsibilities for WA Cares-approved services:
DSHS/HCLA
Statewide providers
Tribal providers
Providers of the following services:
• Adaptive Equipment and Technology
• Adult Family Home, including Respite Care
• Assisted Living Facility, including Respite Care
• Care Transition Coordination
• Eligible Relative Care (Qualified Family Members, In-Home Personal Care)
• In-Home Personal Care (CDWA: Individual Providers), including Respite Care
• Memory Care (residential facilities)
• Nursing Home, including Respite Care
• Professional Services (Nurse Delegation and Private Duty Nursing)
AAAs
Adult Day Services (Adult Day Care and Adult Day Health)
Dementia & Behavioral Support (community-based)
Education and Consultation
Environmental Modification
Home Delivered Meals (HDM)
Home Safety Evaluation
In-Home Personal Care (Home Care Agencies), including Respite Care
Professional Services (Skilled Nursing)
Personal Emergency Response System (PERS)
Services that assist paid and unpaid Caregivers (Housework and Errands; Yardwork and Snow Removal)
Transportation
Continue
Administrative rules for WA Cares’ registration and deregistration processes are being established. Providers and beneficiaries will be offered resources and/or training materials to support their interactions and service delivery. WA Care Continued
The WA Cares Fund Provider Network Directory will list qualified providers after the contract and registration are completed. The directory will be maintained by DSHS but hosted by Community Living Connections. WA Cares will also leverage Carina’s collaboration with Consumer Direct Washington to allow eligible beneficiaries to identify individual providers for in-home personal care. WA Cares will also contract with Financial Management Services vendors to procure goods on behalf of beneficiaries, process reimbursements to beneficiaries, and manage the contracting and processing of payroll/claims for qualified family members under eligible relative care and medical providers.
No one is born knowing how to take care of a person getting older, experiencing dementia or living with a disability. This online tool is free to all unpaid family caregivers in Washington.
Want to stay connected?
Watch our webinar recordings, follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram or subscribe to our newsletter for updates.
Dementia Action Collaborative
DSHS, in partnership with the Dementia Action Collaborative and the Washington Family Caregiver Learning Portal, has created a new flyer to build awareness of the services available for unpaid family caregivers. Please spread the word by sending people who may need these resources to wacaregivingjourney.com to help family caregivers find local support, discover ways to reduce stress and get the provide the best care possible for their loved one.
Resource Awareness for Deaf, DeafBlind, DeafPlus and Hard of Hearing People
The National Association for Hearing and Speech Action declared that Better Hearing and Speech Awareness Month will be changed to National Speech-Language-Hearing Month.
National Speech-Language-Hearing Month is celebrated every May and honors speech-language pathology and audiology professionals who work with a range of people with hearing loss, respecting their various lived experiences. Speech-Language-Hearing Awareness Month has strong correlations with Mental Health Awareness Month due to hearing loss’s impacts on physical, emotional, and mental health.
Untreated hearing loss can lead to communication challenges, isolation, depression, loss of functionality in the workplace, reduced earnings, increased falls and possible progression to dementia. Many people with hearing loss struggle with self-validation. Self-validation skills build healthy relationships by demonstrating respect for self and others. Take the extra time to check on how they may understand you and the process during the interaction.
When you meet a person with hearing loss, it is OK to pause and scan your body for your reaction. Acknowledge what is happening. Take a moment to breathe. After recollecting yourself, you can ask, “How do you prefer to communicate?”. They can inform you what works for them.
It is critical to refer Deaf, DeafBlind, Deaf Plus, and Hard of Hearing individuals who need services to the Office of Deaf and Hard of Hearing’s case management program.
Click here to learn more.
Additional Resources:
• Washington State Online Directory for Mental Health Providers serving Deaf and Hard of Hearing
• Mental Health Care for Deaf Individuals: Needs,Risk Factors and Access to Treatment
• Deaf Community Mental Health and Barriers to Care
• The Emotional Side of Hearing Loss - Hearing Loss Association of America
• National Speech-Language-Hearing Month
• New Name Announced for Better Hearing and Speech Month
Prepare in a Year: Practice and Test Your Emergency Plan
Over the last two months, we’ve created our emergency plans. The next step is to practice and test our plans.
Practicing our plans when there isn’t an emergency helps prepare us for when there is an emergency. During time changes, it is a great time to practice and prepare.
A few ways to practice and maintain your plan include:
• Review your plan every six months so everyone remembers what to do
• Conduct fire and emergency evacuation drills
• Test and recharge your fire extinguishers according to the manufacturer's instructions
• Test your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors every month, replace batteries every six months
• Replace stored water and food every six months to a year, depending on expiration dates
• Update your plan as necessary
Our plans are tested during more minor emergencies, such as power outages and inclement weather. Another great way to test our emergency plans is to participate in planned activities, such as the Great Washington Shake Out, to be held on October 17 at 10:17 a.m. this year.
By practicing and testing our emergency plans, we can make sure they are adequate and make sense for us and our families. This helps us be prepared for when there is a more significant emergency and make sure we know what to do, how to connect or reconnect, and how to be resilient.
Resources: Prepare in a Year Guide: https://mil.wa.gov/personal
Great WA Shake Out: https://mil.wa.gov/shakeout
Flip the Script on Aging – May is Older Americans Month
This May is Older Americans Month. A time to celebrate older adult’s many and varied contributions to society by recognizing the importance of social connection on health and wellbeing. Washington state is nationally recognized as a place where older adults can live and age with dignity and independence. Washington is taking steps to reframe aging issues by spreading awareness of bias towards older people, along with the value, wisdom and resiliency of older adults.
nutrition programs that reduce hunger and offer social connection for
By 2030, it’s estimated that 1 in 5 Washingtonians will be older than 65.
more than 77,900 older adults experiencing food insecurity in our state.
TAP to read Proclamation
The 2025 theme, Flip the Script on Aging, focuses on transforming how society see and approaches aging. It encourages individuals and communities to challenge stereotypes and dispel misconceptions.
With a commitment to longevity, Washington has built an Age- and Dementia-Friendly state that promotes healthy aging and active living for older adults. By 2030, it’s estimated that 1 in 5 Washingtonians will be older than 65. We support the basic needs of older adults promoting
Older Americans Month highlights the critical work senior centers, family caregivers, direct care workers, community meal sites, area agencies on aging, and other home and community-based organizations provide to mitigate the adverse effects of social isolation on older adults.
Serve with respect and dignity.
Building a Stronger and More Accountable Adult Protective Services
At Adult Protective Services, we are committed to continuously improving the quality and accountability of our services to individuals requiring assistance. Our Program Integrity, Performance, and Advancement team plays a key role in this effort, driving quality improvements through data-driven analysis, subject matter expert interviews, and strategic initiatives. The PIPA team ensures program compliance, optimizes performance, and fosters innovation to support long-term organizational goals.
To enhance accountability and responsiveness, we are implementing standardized processes across APS to streamline operations, improve performance metrics, and ensure timely interventions. These improvements align with the Home and Community Living Administration’s 4th Strategic Goal, which focuses on improving quality, accountability, and responsiveness across services.
Together, we can achieve better outcomes for the individuals we serve and our dedicated staff. By embracing these initiatives, we are not just improving processes—we are creating a stronger, more effective APS that continues to make a difference every day.
Out of the Nursing Home and into Community Living: Lisa’s Story
Being away from my family was the hardest part of living in care. Thanks to the Roads to Community Living program, everything changed. With my caseworker’s help, I moved into a beautiful 55+ apartment community—a fresh start. At first, it didn’t feel permanent, but once I settled in, it truly felt like home.
Now I have support, independence, and hope. I’m getting stronger every day and looking forward to walking again. Most importantly, I have a home to call my own.
Watch Lisa’s story to see how Roads to Community Living helped her transition to independent living.
Stay informed and subscribe to our newsletter.
Partner with People to Access
Here We Grow Again!
Flower Power- Spring Connection Video!
Please join us in our first Home and Community Living Administration staff engagement activity!
Between now and May 15, please upload a photo of a favorite flower or blooming tree/shrubbery. We will compile these into a video and share the inspiration and beauty back with all our HCLA teammates next month!
Why flowers? Because JUST LIKE YOU, they are unique, colorful, inspire awe, and are incredibly resilient! And like all of us in our organization and service delivery system, they are part of a larger eco-system that works together to create something amazing!
Thank you for joining us in this activity! Here we grow again!
Coffee Chat!
What is it?
A video interview series featuring different leaders.
Why was it created?
Build connections with our leaders.
Why should you check it out?
For inspiration and a stronger sense of connection.
Watch previous Coffee Chats: Right here!
Tap the coffee chat cup or click here to meet Peter Graham, MSD Deputy Director!
The first full week of May is always
Public Service Recognition Week!
Every day is a great day to appreciate your teammates, but especially during PSRW! Prioritize 5 minutes each day this week to Recognize A Valuable Employee (RAVE) by sending them a R.A.V. E. review! (It’s so easy and feels great for the both the recipient and the sender!)
Read a few recent RAVE Reviews on the last page of this magazine! Did you know, according to Gallup research, peer recognition is proven to support retention and wellbeing?
Thank you for all you do everyday in service to others and for sharing the love with your awesome teammates!
Learn more about this 30-year tradition and scheduled celebrations.
Photo credit: Amy Besel
Wellness Note – MOVE!
This month, we're focusing on the MOVE dimension of well-being because movement fuels energy, health, and happiness!
Special thanks to Autumn Ekstrom (MSD) for the idea of including QR codes so the note may be printed, posted, and accessed in our office locations too!
Secretary of State’s Combined Fund Drive Recognition!
Organizational Development Newsletter
Explore May’s one-page Organizational Development Newsletter to find links to all the happenings, free trainings and new resources we’ve created just for you!
As we continue our reorganization journey, watch for more subjects and sessions in the Learning Center related under the Lessons in Leadership and Focal Point series!
Congratulations to Trisha Armenta (Home and Community Services Division), on being selected as the 2024 Statewide CFD Local Coordinator of the Year! Read this brief nomination to learn about her outstanding leadership and community impact. All our 2024 CFD Local Coordinator volunteers deserve our gratitude for their efforts which not only help charities but also create fun and meaningful employee engagement opportunities for us to be a part of something bigger than ourselves!
About the CFD:
• It’s included in our benefits package and lets us give to charities we choose through an easy, safe and secure payroll donation, allowed on state time using your work computer!
• You may sign-up and edit your donations any time! (Even 2 dollars a month makes a huge difference)
• Next year, you could follow in Trisha’s footsteps! Watch for the 2025 call for volunteers.
Left to right: Bonnie Jacques (DSHS CFD Campaign Executive), Trisha Armenta (2024 Statewide Local Coordinator of the Year), Steve Hobbs (Washington State Secretary of State)
Celebrating the Compassion & Dedication of Nurses
It’s that time of year again when we look back and honor nursing professionals for their contributions over the years.
It was not until 1953 that the concept of establishing a day of recognition for nurses came about. Dorothy Parker from the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare sent a proclamation request to President Eisenhower. However, Eisenhower never signed the proclamation. It would take until 1990, when “Nurses Week” became a regularly recognized celebration for nurses through the efforts of the American Nursing Association.
When we think about nursing, the instant reaction is that nurses deal with the difficult aspects of providing human care, such as bathing, toileting and medication needs. However, there are other aspects to consider, including how nurses advocate for patients, provide emotional support, and promote health education.
Every day, nurses prioritize helping and serving others. They serve in various capacities, ranging from regulatory work, such as nurse surveyor, to bedside nursing in hospitals, public health nurses in the community and other roles across different industries. Nurses play a vital role in all these settings, and their insight into the care and advocacy of patients has been invaluable.
This Nurses Week, take the time to thank the nurses you know—whether a friend, family member, co-worker or someone else —for their contributions and dedication to making the world a better place.
Supporting Mental Health and Honoring Kinship Caregivers
This is also Mental Health Awareness Month reminding us of the critical importance of social connection for health and wellbeing. From senior centers and caregiver programs to community meals and kinship support, our networks are working daily to reduce isolation and support older adults in living fully.
We also recognize Kinship Caregiver Day on May 18, a time to honor the extraordinary commitment of Washington’s kinship caregivers. These dedicated individuals—often grandparents, aunts, uncles, and other relatives—selflessly step in to care for children, offering them safety, stability, and love. Their strength and compassion are foundational to our communities and a vital part of our long-term services and supports landscape.
Joining in the Celebration! Nurses Week
of May 6–12
Nurses Week recognizes the vital contributions nurses make to improving people’s health and longevity. This year’s theme is “The Power of Nurses”. We’re grateful for the impact our nurses make in the arena of health and long-term services and supports.
Nurses play a pivotal role in helping Washington state residents live with access to health care services. As our statewide and national population grows older, having access to safe, high-quality health care will be an even more important part of keeping our citizens healthy. Nurses are a critical element in achieving our DSHS strategic priority to create healthy and safe communities.
Home and Community Living Administration nurses create and support person-centered care plans that bridge teams and communities and facilitate transitions of individuals with complex needs to move and sustain services in their own homes and residential settings. They work to ensure client safety and quality of care whether it’s through assessment, case management and care coordination, regulatory oversight and complaint investigation, policy development and training, or technical assistance and consultation. Our nurses exemplify knowledge, empathy, and professionalism and we are fortunate to have them as part of our HCLA team.
A Story of Compassion and Dedication in Foster Care
Autumn Wade, Fostering Well-Being’s Lead RN Clinical Nurse Advisor goes above and beyond to find answers for children and youth in foster care. One story has Autumn pouring through medical records to identify a medical gap for a youth seen for possible skin cancer by a provider in Texas prior to coming into placement in Washington. Autumn could not confirm the youth had followed up on this health concern. Autumn called numerous providers in Texas until she found the provider the youth had seen and requested the medical records. She connected with her Washington providers for follow up for this youth. This coordination took hours, and the youth received the follow-up needed. This is one example of Autumn’s compassion and exemplary nursing commitment to children and youth.
Improve services continually.
Introducing the Management Services Division
Management Services Division has supported the Aging and Long-Term Support Administration and the Developmental Disabilities Administration for several years and will continue to do so within the Home and Community Living Administration. Here's a little bit about our structure.
Our budget office, overseen by Carla McKnight, calculates budgets, determines what the Legislature has funded, and monitors spending throughout the year.
Finance, led by Amie Weeks, manages our spending – making sure grants are directed appropriately, bills are paid, and we comply with state and federal spending rules. If you manage a contract or use a purchasing card, you have likely worked with them.
Facilities and customer service is headed up by Chris Christopherson. This unit oversees our leased locations, greets people visiting Blake East, and does HQ purchasing.
The contracts unit manager position is vacant, but this crack team is still hard at work ensuring all our contracts are executed legally and to the standards DSHS requires.
Chief of Rates is Jonathon Smith. This office takes the large buckets of funding from the Legislature and turns them into daily, hourly, and unit rates for our providers. They also model scenarios for collective bargaining with providers.
Deputy Director of MSD is Peter Graham who oversees various offices also manages Teri Smistad’s HQ timekeeping team.
MSD is committed to working across organizational lines. That will not change with the creation of HCLA (and BHHA.)
Kudos: For Tod Johnson, Cost Reimbursement Analyst
I wanted to express our gratitude for all your invaluable help this year. Starting a new agency is already challenging, but creating a detailed cost report for those of us who aren’t naturally inclined toward numbers was an even bigger hurdle.
The report itself was quite complex, and there were countless times when you went above and beyond to meet with us, answer our questions, and point us in the right direction. Your willingness to serve as a reliable resource truly made all the difference, helping us successfully navigate the process and submit everything on time.
Your role is crucial, and we are beyond grateful to have someone like you in it.
Thank you for being such an essential part of our success.
-Lorraine McConahy, Innerspark Services (provider)
PROJECT MANAGEMENT SUPPORT FOR YOU!
Join our monthly Practical Project Management Community of Practice where we provide resources, tools and support for anyone managing projects or wanting to learn about the subject! We bring people together to share best practices, project highlights, and tools. Hosted by Mika Greathouse, PMO Administrator, and Beth Adams, Lean Continuous Improvement Manager, with special guest speakers throughout the year. Every third Tuesday at 1:00 p.m.
Discover something new!
May Event: Tribal and EDAI Administrators discuss working with Tribal communities.
Here is a project highlight:
Project Highlight – Ensuring Access to Medicaid Services (Access Rule)—a project to increase transparency and engagement for people receiving home and community services.
Watch for more HCLA project management updates and resources as we continue our evolution from DDA and ALTSA to HCLA!
Resources:
• Access Rule SharePoint
• CMS HCBS Access Rule Charter
• Project Management Office SharePoint
• Submitting a Project Request
• Providing Feedback or Ask a Question
Progress of Remote Caregiving
The early documented data from our Remote Caregiving initiative tells a powerful story of outreach and connection. It’s inspiring to see how this effort is making a difference in the lives of so many: 65 case managers (HCS & AAA) have taken the initiative to inform or refer clients to Remote Caregiving.
528 clients have been introduced to the concept of Remote Caregiving, engaging in conversations about this innovative service. This has resulted in approximately 25 referrals for remote services, a strong indicator of its relevance and potential impact.
Regional Highlights of Clients Informed:
Region 1: 471 Region 2: 27 Region 3: 30
These numbers reflect a growing awareness and openness to embracing new ways of personal care. Each client informed represents a step toward meeting their needs, offering increased choices, and empowering their independence.
This progress is a testament to the dedication of everyone involved. By sharing this opportunity, you’re helping clients and families discover tools that sustain their well-being, and you’re supporting the retention of the caregiving workforce.
Remote caregiving bridges the gap between independence and essential caregiving. Learn more about how to refer HCS clients to remote caregiving today by visiting our SharePoint page or emailing RemoteCaregiving@dshs.wa.gov
Sign Up to receive Remote Caregiving updates!
Dan Thompson Award Improves Accessibility in People’s Homes
The second round of the Dan Thompson Memorial Fund grant award funding is well underway and has been making a direct impact to improve people’s lives all across Washington state. An example of the meaningful use of these grant funds is Vadis. Vadis has provided low-income housing to the intellectual and developmentally disabled community for over 25 years. Vadis owns 31 houses and duplexes in Pierce, Kitsap, King and Thurston counties which are rented exclusively to low-income people with disabilities. Of all their tenants, 88% have an income of less than $14,500 per year. Vadis’ goal is to create quality, accessible homes with affordable rent structures.
With Round 2 grant funds from the Dan Thompson memorial account, Vadis has provided accessibility modifications to improve 10 homes for 21 clients in Pierce County. This work includes repairing driveways, replacing decks and ramps with sustainable materials and improving flooring with durable, wheelchairfriendly materials.
The tenants have shared that they love the improvements and have expressed their appreciation
for the upgrades. One tenant is a lovely woman with limited mobility. The repair to the driveway allows her to now be able to walk to her mailbox and collect her mail. She now can access the front area of the house where she enjoys spending time outside watching the neighborhood and visiting with neighbors.
Their Community of Choice.
Navigating Change and Strengthening Our Commitment to EDAI
Your EDAI team wanted to provide some clarity and offer some thoughts as we are all experiencing change at every level. We have received several questions about HCLA’s commitment to EDAI given the announcement of the Office of Equity, Diversity, Access, and Inclusion dissolving it’s current matrixed form.
In years past the EDAI positions used to be held internal to each administration. Roughly two years ago, in an effort to provide equitable, and collaborative EDAI approaches across DSHS, the Office of EDAI was created and held under the Office of the Secretary as a matrix of positions. The announcement of the matrix dissolving just means that the EDAI positions held by each administration will be released back to the administration and each administration can choose how they allocate those positions.
For HCLA that is Claire Knight, Morgan Olson, Jamie Wiggins and previously Keya Burks. Keya Burks has elected to take a position outside of DSHS, we wish her all the best in her new role and thank her for her brief but impactful time with our team and with ALTSA.
Our team will be reporting to OAS for the time being and we are working as a team to re-imagine what the best structure is to ensure that the work of EDAI continues within HCLA .
In the meantime, we encourage you to continue reaching out to our team for support and attend our offerings, especially ones that feel as though they will support you during these times of uncertainty and change.
Upcoming Offerings:
HCLA Cultural Community Onboarding:
Click here to register June 26th • 9 AM – 3 PM
EDAI Focal Point:
Click here to view the schedule May 14th • 1 PM - 2 PM
EDAI Connection Café:
Click here for the link to attend June 3rd • 1pm- 230pm
EDAI and Org Dev. Joint Focal Point Resiliency in Uncertain Times:
Click here to register
2025 Legislative Session Wrap-Up
Congrats to the team! SHB 1490, Agency request legislation concerning fingerprintbackground checks, passed and was signed.
At the time of writing (10 a.m. on April 28), the 2025 legislative session has ended. The legislature delivered the final conference budget to the Governor’s office by Sine Die1 (April 27) and adjourned. It now awaits his signature. The Governor has 20 days (excluding Sundays) to sign the budget. He also can section veto portions of the budget, so the act of his signing usually changes the budget at least one more time. Look out for messages from Secretary Strange, the central budget office and our Assistant Secretary Bea Rector for more information.
The legislature had a significant budget deficit to address which limited the amount of policy items they could really tackle this session, but there were still some significant wins for HCLA, our clients and providers. A couple highlights:
• SHB 1142, Standardizing basic training and certification requirements for long-term care workers who provide in-home care for their family members, including spouses or domestic partners. This was ALTSA agency request legislation that would give family members employed through a home care agency or the WA Cares ‘third option’s training requirements and certification exemption as family member individual providers. This is important because the WA Cares statute specifically allows family members to be employed not just as IPs, as has historically been the case, but through home care agencies and the to-be-defined ‘third option.’ This change will level the playing field for family members, regardless of payor source and administrative employer.
• ESSB 5291, Implementing the recommendations of the long-term services and supports trust commission. This bill took all the LTSS Trust Act Commission’s (the oversight body for the WA Cares program) recommendations from the last few years and implemented them in statute. This will help the WA Cares program implement smoothly as they look to begin paying out benefits in July 2026.
As we dive deeper into bills passed, the final budget and the Reimagine DSHS project, there will be more information for us to unpack together. I am continually thankful to work with such a dedicated group of social service professionals who make my job in the legislative world so easy
As always, don’t hesitate to contact me (laura.han@dshs.wa.gov) or your division coordinator (see Legislative Affairs SharePoint) with questions!
1Sine Die is Latin for “without a day.” In our modern legal world, it means to adjourn without an appointed date for resumption. I have personally always found this mildly confusing, because the legislature definitely has a day for resumption… it’s always the second Monday of January. But, I digress. - Laura Han
Left to right: Luisa Parada-Estrada, Ted Metcalf, Rep. Edwin Obras, Governor Bob Ferguson, Jeanette Childress and Jon Noski
Accessibility Resources
Microsoft Word has introduced a new inclusive writing setting, helping users create content that reflects and respects diverse perspectives while reducing unintended bias.
Instructions to add settings in Word:
• Select File > Options > Proofing
• Ensure Mark grammar errors as you type is enabled
• Open “Grammar & Refinements” settings
• Scroll to “Inclusiveness” and select the checkboxes
• Click OK
Tools by Software
Microsoft Word Step by Step Instructions Checklist
PowerPoint Video: Slides Reading Order
PowerPoint Checklist
Adobe Acrobat Verify PDF Accessibility Instructions
Adobe Checklist
ALT Text Resources: Writing Effective Text
WebAIM: Alternative Text
Alt Text Decision Tree
Section508.gov
Quick Links: Accessibility Resources
Plain Talk Policy
DSHS Templates
DSHS Logos
Word Style Guide
Focal Point
Sessions
Schedule can be found at: Focal Point Training Topics or Focal Point SharePoint site
May 6 • 2:30 –3:50 PM Focal Point: Introduction to A3s
May 13 • 10 – 11:50 AM How to Excel with Excel
May 13 • 10 – 11:50 AM Resiliency in Uncertain Times
May 14 • 9:00 – 10:20 AM Exploring Our Values & Their Connections to EDAI
May 21 • 1 – 2:20 PM Growth Mindset
May 28 • 10 – 11:20 AM Reframing Resistance
Employer of Choice
Use this EOC Ideas Submission Form to share your ideas on making DSHS a great place to work or visit Employer of Choice - Home (sharepoint.com)
Shared Leave
You can donate your leave to a coworker in need. Visit Shared Leave site.
If you have:
• Over 80 hours of Annual Leave.
• Over 176 hours of Sick Leave.
• A Personal Holiday available.
Tanya Clairborne has been my Rock here at APS and I am very lucky to have her as my supervisor. She has helped me become a better investigator by teaching me in a very respectful and professional manner. Again, I appreciate you Tanya more than you know. Thank you
Tamara Buyea
Monika Balmer has been my supervisor for the last 7 months. I feel very fortunate to have her as my supervisor. Monika has helped me grow as a person, and as an investigator. She is always available for a quick call and never seems to have a bad day. Because of her guidance, my case closures have increased, and I feel like I have a better grasp of the APS material.
Take time to appreciate others by sending them a RAVE Review! Bookmark the link! It’s so easy and can really impact a sense of connection and belonging for both the sender and receiver!
Sarah Sablan answers questions is knowledgeable and assists with information. She is kind, compassionate, professional and is appreciated. Thank you, Sarah
Cristina Gallegos
Samantha Hyder brings her wealth of APS experience, her positive, friendly attitude and her dedication to training and learning to every training interaction. We have just completed a documentation and investigation planning training module together and it has been a joy working with her and seeing how she cultivates questions, builds a trusting and supportive learning community and provides real world examples to support learning acquisition. Samantha rocks.
Beth Templeton
Lisa Porter is an amazing human being and a valued asset to APS! She continues to help her team and share her knowledge as a financial exploitation specialist. I value her input and help!
Deana Hoffman
I need to take a moment to acknowledge Erika Schlund for consistently demonstrating exceptional hard work and a positive attitude, particularly because she isn’t much past 90 days since joining HCS and has already experienced some of the more intense cases and referrals that we usually don’t encounter until we’ve been here a while! Her resilience and commitment to maintaining a professional and optimistic outlook (with a splash of humor) not only inspires me but also contributes to a supportive work environment for our team and the folks she serves. I truly appreciate her drive and unwavering effort to ensure a job well done. Erika has been a fantastic addition to the Kelso team and we sure appreciate her! :)
Emily Comstock
Ted Trask