Public Sector HR Association (PSHRA) is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2023 PSHRA Awards. The award winners were recognized at the PSHRA 23 Annual Conference held in San Diego, California.
ALEXANDRIA, Va., Oct. 9, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Public Sector HR Association (PSHRA) is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2023 PSHRA Awards. The award winners were recognized at the PSHRA 23 Annual Conference held in San Diego, California.
The following were recognized for their contributions in advancing the association and the public sector human resource profession:
2023 PSHRA President's Award:
Cheryl Lewis-Smith, IPMA-SCP from Nashville, Tennessee.
Lewis-Smith serves as the current PSHRA President, recently also serving as an Executive Council member from 2019-2021. Lewis-Smith is an avid community service volunteer and leader. Having served on various state, regional and national boards and committees in both a professional and personal capacity, she is truly dedicated and committed to making a difference. Lewis-Smith is recognized with the 2023 PSHRA President's Award for her commitment and dedication in leading the association and its mission.
2023 Honorary Life Member:
Carol Rubino, IPMA-SCP from Largo, Maryland.
Rubino is a current and past member of the Executive Council and has Chaired the Fellowship Committee twice. She is an honorary member of Southern Region IPMA-HR. Carol has served as Chapter President, President Elect, Executive Board member, Executive Board Secretary, Executive Council Member at Large, Certification Advisory Board Member, Program Chair, and Awards Committee. Her Chapter work has earned a Chapter Lifetime Membership Award, an Outstanding Professional Award and Outstanding Public Service Award. She is a life member of the Montgomery County, MD Chapter, a member of the Patuxent River Basin, MD Chapter and a member of the Virginia Chapter. She has also served as National President of the National Association of Civil Service Commissioners (NACSC). Rubino holds a Bachelor of Science Degree, two master's Degrees, a Law Degree and is an Attorney who is licensed to practice law. She is admitted to the bar and to several courts to include the United States Supreme Court. Rubino is recognized as an Honorary Life Member for her distinguished service in advancing the purposes of the association by making significant contributions to IPMA-HR at the national, regional, and chapter level.
2023 Chapter Award of Excellence:
Nevada Chapter of PSHRA
Established in 1988, the chapter now represents the whole state of Nevada. In the past year, the Nevada Chapter has focused on providing increased networking and holding speaking events on topics important to their membership. This has allowed them to increase their membership. The Nevada Chapter is recognized with the 2023 Chapter Award of Excellence for significantly advancing and enhancing the public sector human resources profession through innovative membership recruitment and retention strategies, excellent educational programs, and quality member communication.
2023 PSHRA Small Agency Award of Excellence
The City of Port St. Lucie, Florida
The City of Port St. Lucie employees approximately 1,400 individuals that provide a wide range of municipal services. Each of the individual City departments continually advance initiatives to elevate their departments and the City as a whole. The City of Port St. Lucie has a number of successful programs. One of the more innovative programs are the initiatives undertaken by the Human Resources Department to revamp the new-hire orientation program. The new program is titled "Keys to the City" and is a half day program in which new hires learn about the mission, vision and values of the City; the strategic plan; and benefits in a fun and engaging way. The feedback has been so positive that long-tenured employees also requested to attend, so the Human Resources department incorporated those employees into the program by offering a refresher course. This refresher reiterates the City's mission, vision and values, and strategic plan; as well as providing those long-term employees with information on current benefit offerings as many updated benefits are continuously added.
2023 PSHRA Large Agency Awards of Excellence
The City of San Antonio, Texas
The City of San Antonio Human Resources Department is a centralized human resources agency with more than 100 HR professionals providing critical services to 13,000 City employees. The City's Core Values include Teamwork, Professionalism, Integrity, and Innovation. The City of San Antonio has implemented several new initiatives designed to develop and engage employees, including:
- An Innovation Academy (Through a unique partnership with Alamo Community Colleges, the City of San Antonio offers employees the opportunity to receive over 100 hours of specialized training to better improve operations and processes in their home departments)
- Apprenticeships (To address critical labor shortages in our Solid Waste Management and Animal Care Services Departments, the City created the Apprenticeship Program to allow new or existing employees to receive real, hands-on, experiential training.)
- Gear-Up (a wellness program that helps CDL employees work towards passing their DOT medical certifications)
In 2022, the City was recognized by Forbes magazine as one of the best employers in Texas.
The County of San Diego, California
The County of San Diego employs a large workforce to provide essential services to the residents of the county. With over 18,000 employees, the County government serves in various roles and positions across different departments and agencies. San Diego County has developed a same day hiring program that can be a model for public agencies. Same Day Hiring operates out of Department of Human Resources (DHR) within the County of San Diego organization where there is a centralized and dedicated team to manage, operate and coordinate the program. Same Day Hiring primarily focused on Hard to Recruit classifications and is also now open for all department classifications to participate. Since the inception of Same Day Hiring in 2021, there have been more than 100 events for over 30 classifications including, but not limited to healthcare, public safety, Protective Services Worker, Housing Program Analysts, Animal Care Attendants, and more. Same Day Hiring has resulted in 650+ same day offers of employment.
"We are extremely proud of the 2023 award recipients and the shining example they set for all of us in support of the public sector and the field of public sector HR," said PSHRA CEO Cara Woodson Welch. "In addition, the innovative programs of our agency award winners, showcase new and successful workforce strategies to recruit, engage and retain public sector employees, which is critically important in today's workplace environment.
PSHRA congratulates all 2023 Award Winners.
For more information about the PSHRA Awards, please visit our PSHRA Awards page.
Media Contact
Robert Svihla, PSHRA, 1 (703) 549-7100, [email protected], https://pshra.org
SOURCE PSHRA
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