1996 Outstanding County Program Awards winners

Public Awareness Category

Mecklenburg County
“Good Government”

Knowing that plenty of great stories about county services went unreported, Mecklenburg County created a monthly one-page newsletter entitled Good Government, which they successfully distributed to the media, business leaders and other interested citizens by fax.

Good Government premiered during County Government Week in 1995.

The newsletter answered two important needs for Mecklenburg County and its employees. First, it allowed the county to proactively market activities to the general public and news media that reporters normally wouldn't consider “hard news.”

Second, employees and department heads could use the piece internally to show staff how the organization was trying to spotlight their good work. Department heads and management appreciated another proactive tool that did not require more money and gave them another avenue to the media.

During that first year, Mecklenburg County focused on a direct audience (news media in the Charlotte/Mecklenburg County market) and an indirect audience (county residents).

In 1996, the county expanded its direct audience to include local business leaders, chamber of commerce officials and other interested persons with a fax machine.

Mecklenburg County approached the publication with an eye toward building a long-term communication device to remind the media that residents needed to hear stories of government efficiency and effectiveness. With that mindset, Mecklenburg County considered any actual news coverage to be “gravy” to the overall goal of building confidence in government.

One of the biggest questions and risks Mecklenburg County faced in launching a publication unabashedly titled Good Government was that the news media would reject it as self-promotional fluff.

However, not one of the local media rejected the publication or scoffed at its intent. Reporters did pick up several features in Good Government, as starting points for their own stories.

Mecklenburg County plans to continue publishing Good Government and sending it by broadcast fax in its effort to build relationships with the media and citizens. A side benefit to the this public awareness effort is that the county has built a broadcast fax database, which it can use to distribute other printed materials.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact John McGillicuddy, Mecklenburg Co. public information officer, 704-336-2475.

Henderson County
“Mounted Volunteers in Partnership (VIP) Patrol”

Mount up, Henderson County Sheriff George H. Erwin, Jr., said, and 40 people ranging from housewives to students to retirees grabbed their saddles and promptly joined the Mounted Volunteers in Partnership Patrol.

Designed in 1995 to bring citizens and law enforcement officers together for a common goal, the Mounted VIP Program could be one of the most novel examples of “community policing” in the country. The volunteers work in tandem with mounted deputy sheriffs.

The program requires coordination but little funding or staff time. Captain Eddie Pruett, with the sheriff's department, serves as the department's liaison with a full-time volunteer director, Albert P. Callie.

Calli donates a minimum of 40 hours a week to work with Pruett to schedule volunteers' participation in training, parades, school visits, crowd control and search and rescue.

The volunteers supply their own horses, stables, feed, trucks, and trailers. The mounted VIPs also sell Christmas trees to raise money for the program.

The group dedicated more than 4,000 hours of services to community events, such as Henderson County High School football games, the Apple Festival Parade, Boys and Girls Club Riding Day and Fourth of July festivities.

Sheriff Erwin estimates the services would have cost the county $50,000. Perhaps, most importantly, the Mounted VIP Program builds a positive image for the sheriff's department in the community.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Sheriff George H. Erwin, at 704-697-4596.

Harnett County
“RSVP Senior Citizens' Fair”

For the past two years, Harnett County seniors have found their health, quality of life, education and, most importantly, their companionship vastly improved through the Retired Senior Volunteer Program's Senior Citizens Fair.

Since May is traditionally recognized nationally as “Older Americans Month,” the RSVP Special Events planned the Fair for that time. The underlying message was that senior citizens were a vital part of the community, leading active productive lives.

In addition to being a celebration, the 1995 Fair offered seniors information on retirement, insurance, health, and other topics.

The N.C. National Guard Armory in Dunn graciously agreed to give the Fair its facility free so organizers could hold the event during the day while seniors' children were at work or in school.

Enthusiastic volunteers contacted vendors and exhibitors using personal contacts, newspaper stories, and letters to county and area agencies.

Volunteers creatively advertised the fair through public service announcements, civic newsletters, mailings to churches, and flyers to local businesses.

The Daily Record, the only county-wide newspaper, developed a co-op page to run the week of the Fair. The newspaper staff sold ads to exhibitors and the Fair found itself with a free full-page ad.

On May 25, more than 500 senior citizens gathered at the Armory. One person was overheard saying, “I've never seen so many happy people in one place!”

The 1995 Fair was such a success that plans for the 1996 Fair began immediately. The Armory donated its facility and many of the exhibitors signed up for another year. However, one challenge surfaced in 1995 that needed addressing in 1996—parking.

The Armory had only 40 spaces in its lot. Everyone pitched in to solve the dilemma. The City of Dunn blocked off the Armory lot with barricades to create a “Handicapped Only” and “Drop Zone” for vans and carpools. The Dunn Police Department provided staff to direct traffic.

A hospital across the street from the Armory designated its grassy area for parking and provided a shade tent and security officers. The county's transportation department lent a bus to transport seniors from the tent to the entrance of the facility. Civic groups from across the county provided volunteers to help direct traffic and assist vendors and seniors.

More than 700 seniors attended the Second Annual Senior Citizens' Fair. The entire county worked to give senior citizens a way to have some fun, improve their health and smile a little more. George Burns was right “We're all gonna GET old, but we don't have to BE old!”

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Nancy Wright, director of retired and senior volunteer programs, at 910-893-7578.

Cumberland County
“TeenREAD '95”

Using books, weekly movies, nifty prizes, and creative promotions, the Cumberland County Public Library System lured teenagers into a summer reading program that encouraged teens to explore different genres.

Cumberland County's summer reading club for children 18 months through sixth grade was always a huge success. But after the sixth grade, the library system lacked a coordinated, fun program for teens. That void led the library to create TeenREAD.

Basically, teens read books in seven different categories — horror, romance, science fiction, western, fantasy, mystery and readers' choice — within seven weeks.

Each time they finished a book and completed an evaluation form, they received a sticker. After three stickers, teens received a pair of sunglasses; after five stickers teens received a bank.

When they had filled their cards completely, they turned in their cards for a chance for the grand prize — a compact disc boom box.

To make TeenREAD even more of an event, the Cliffdale Branch Library offered a movie each week to correspond with a certain genre. For instance, the science fiction flick was “The Thing,” while the western selection featured “Stagecoach.” To get into the movie, teens had to have read the book in that genre.

TeenRead succeeded in drawing a total of 709 teens into a summer reading program. Of those, 38 percent read three or more books, 30 percent read five or more books, and 12 percent read all seven books. A total of 179 teens attended the weekly movies at the Cliffdale Branch. Door prizes were awarded to those who came.

Getting TeenREAD started cost $1,828, with $1,438 of that coming from the county and $390 from the Friends of the Library. Because local businesses donated prizes, the library gave every teen who finished all seven books, a consolation prize after the boom box winner was named.

The program was so successful in bringing teens into the library and creating partnerships with local businesses, that Cumberland County made TeenREAD an annual event.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact the Cumberland County Public Library at 910-864-3800.

Pitt County
“Block Addressing”

When Pitt County moved to a block addressing system in its rural, unincorporated areas to improve emergency responsiveness, staff decided that a video explaining the concept and citizens' responsibilities was an effective communication tool. The change effected thousands of people and required clear, instructive information.

Pitt County created a seven-minute video to supplement its traditional publicity methods — news releases, fliers, and direct mail. The video covered important information in an interesting and humorous way. This was the county's first attempt at a video project.

The scripting, direction and promotions were handled in house. Former and current Pitt County employees were the actors. A local television broadcaster provided the narration and a videographer shot and edited the tape. The entire project cost $1,000.

Distribution was a key element. The county secured commitments from the local television stations to broadcast the Block Addressing video as a public service to the community. Television stations donated the air time willingly. The educational access channel, which reaches more than 20,000 households, also played the video.

The county distributed the video to area fire and rescue operations for them to train their personnel on the block addressing system. Planners also received a copy since civic groups frequently called on them to give presentations about the project.

More than 30 people were involved in the project. Every member of the planning department reviewed the script and the rough cut of the video. Pitt County was so pleased with the video and citizen response, that it plans to create another video on county services in 1996.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact the Public Information Office, at 919-830-6355.

Environment Category

Counties of Chowan, Perquimans, Gates, Dare, Hyde, Currituck and Tyrrell
“Albemarle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority”

The seven counties and 10 municipalities in the Albemarle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority have created and maintained a regional approach to solid waste that is unique in the state.

The Authority enabled the seven member counties to take advantage of collective bargaining strategies to obtain the best possible pricing. In the summer of 1993, the Authority approved a contract with Addington Environmental.

Addington, a private landfill contractor, needed assurances that it would have enough waste generators to open a disposal site in Bertie County. With the Authority's approval, Addington moved forward with a landfill that now services 17 eastern counties. Three of the seven member counties were able to close their unlined landfills.

The Authority is currently investigating possible regional contracts on the sale of recyclables, white goods disposal and tire disposal. The Authority collects solid waste data, invoices customers, collects accounts, and makes reports to the counties. With the help of a grant from the Division of Coastal Management, the Authority is exploring the idea of a materials recovery facility.

The vision of the Authority is to evolve into a total regional solid waste management program that will provide the most efficient and cost effective service possible. Regional cooperation allows the member counties to provide services collectively that individually they could not afford.

Through a Memorandum of Agreement with the district health department, the Authority shares the services of a personnel director, data processor, and accounting clerk to administer the program. The agreement also allows the Authority access to a mainframe computer for its network.

The Authority is financed through a combination of county appropriations, grant funds, and a one dollar per ton fee paid by Addington for all the waste entering the regional facility.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Jerry L. Parks, Albemarle Waste Authority executive director, at 919-297-3307.

Surry County
“Students Exploring the Environment”

The S.E.E. Program (Students Exploring the Environment) was Surry County's answer to the belief that young people didn't realize the types of environmental issues confronting the county or how they could make a difference, particularly in the broad range of career choices they could make.

The county's Natural Resources Committee created a youth subcommittee to brainstorm ideas on programs that would address these issues. Cooperative Extension folks, business leaders, school personnel and members of local government formed the committee. This subcommittee created S.E.E.

The S.E.E. program is a week-long, hands-on learning experience in which high school students explore environmental projects throughout the county. The students receive a notebook and camera to record their experiences and opinions and are exposed to both negative and positive aspects of projects. Field trips begin with a discussion of the concepts the trip will highlight for students. The visit concludes with time for students to express their reactions. This is a more innovative path to career planning than a high school career fair or shadowing someone who is in a particular field.

The planning committee used resource people within the county, focusing on the types of information that would most benefit the students. Probably, one of the most difficult challenges was choosing from the vast array of qualified professionals.

The committee also did its best to use the natural resources of Surry County — Pilot Mountain State Park and the headwaters of the Mitchell River, among others.

Each day the program had a particular focus. Tour stops and presentations coincided with the focus area. Presenters talked about their jobs, their training, and gave advice about how to prepare for a career in their field.

The program seems to have worked — several students took environmental classes after their experience, several asked to serve on the Natural Resources Committee's youth subcommittee, and others participated in an elementary school science fair where they talked to younger students about caring for the environment. There is now talk of pairing future S.E.E. participants with mentors in the environmental field after they participate in the program.

In developing the program, organizers used the county's extension service centers as their headquarters and transported the students by vans borrowed from the extension service and school systems. A small fundraiser and benefactors like the Mt. Airy School System and Duke Power Company kept the students fed at lunch time. The county had enough money in the project's account to sponsor it again in 1996.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Dennis Thompson, county manager, at 910-401-8201.

Stokes County
“Multi-Site Scrap Tire Cleanup Program”

Had Stokes County realized what it was getting into — a two-year process with intense negotiations involving local and state agencies — it may have never attempted to clean up three huge scrap tire dumps. But county officials are sure glad they did.

Stokes County officials and residents were plagued with three monstrous scrap tire dumps that were not only an eyesore but had become an environmental hazardous. The tire piles were prime breeding grounds for the Asian Tiger Mosquito, which can transmit a number of serious illnesses including meningitis. Plus, the tire heaps sometimes caught fire creating a petroleum runoff into nearby creeks and covering neighboring homes and vehicles with soot. Air quality diminished in the days after a fire.

The county got its first piece of good news when the state passed the North Carolina Scrap Tire Disposal Act, which established a fund using a 2 percent tax on new tires to help localities clean up tire dumps.

The county began talking with the Department of Environment, Health and Natural Resources about the cleanup and to the Department of Corrections about using inmate labor on the sites. The county is home to a state minimum security prison.

When agreements with and between those agencies were resolved, Stokes County had to find someone who would accept the tires. Help arrived in the form of Tire Incorporated from Winston-Salem.

The last obstacle was the property owner himself, who had hoarded the tires as an economic investment. DEHNR brokered a consent agreement with the property owner, but the owner subsequently broke those agreements and threatened people working on the site with bodily harm. The State Attorney General's Office intervened to halt the owners' interference.

After a year of working on the site with inmate labor, DEHNR offered to speed up the process by underwriting the cost of hiring a private vendor who would use heavy equipment to clean the site.

The county accepted and cleanup proceeded quickly. When the work was finally finished, a total of 175,000 tires had been removed and recycled. The original estimates were 25,000 tires scattered on the three sites.

Besides improving the appearance and environmental health of the area, the scrap tire project has enhanced economic development. As local developers witnessed the county's commitment to cleaning up the sites, they began building new homes in two of the areas.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Craig Greer, county manager, at 910-593-2811.

Wilson County
“Pesticide Container Recycling”

Wilson County began a limited farm pesticide collection program in 1993 but quickly realized that the approximately 600 farmers in its community were willing and able to do even more.

With a $10,000 grant from the Department of Agriculture, the Wilson County Solid Waste Department and the Wilson County Cooperative Extension Service teamed up to create a method to educate farmers about safely disposing of their pesticide jugs.

So how did the county begin? They invited the farmers to a breakfast, which was sponsored by area chemical dealers. Seventy-five pressure nozzles (a $30 value) were given away to some of the 125 farmers who attended.

Speakers detailed how to properly rinse the containers and why disposal was so important. Organizers promoted the program at farm meetings, newsletters, local newspapers, notices in farm supply stores and through brochures.

At the beginning of the planting season, the county placed 12 large containers at the county's solid waste convenience centers.

Each container was covered with a heavy tarp to keep the jugs clean and dry. Instructions on the side of the containers gave directions on how to properly prepare jugs for recycling.

Plastic (HDPE) jugs up to a five-gallon pail were accepted. Convenience center attendants learned how to preview each load of pesticide jugs to ensure they were properly rinsed.

At the end of September, all the containers went to the landfill for grinding. The county contracted with SCT Environmental from Pasadena, TX to grind the pesticide jugs.

The company grinds and recycles the jugs into plastic pallets used by the chemical industry. A total of 19,000 jugs were recycled and shipped to market.

Education didn't stop there. Farmers received a personal letter telling them about the success of the project and asking them for comments.

Those who returned the mailing (102) were eligible for a gift package of a power nozzle, a rubber apron, safety goggles, rubber boots and gloves. Those who indicated they participated in the program but did not have a power nozzle received one free.

Wilson County received praise from the Department of Agriculture and an award of merit from the N.C. Recycling Association.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Jan Manning, environmental engineer, at 919-399-2826.

MECKLENBURG COUNTY
“Piedmont Prairie Restoration Project”

Protecting and preserving endangered plant species, Mecklenburg County learned, doesn't always translate into controversy and years of litigation. Through negotiations with the State Department of Transportation and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Mecklenburg County managed to relocate a lovely endangered flower and enhance its own Piedmont Prairie Restoration Project.

Our story starts with a sunflower, the “Schweintz's Sunflower” to be exact, which only grows within a 60-mile radius of Charlotte where it blooms in the brown, sandy loam of soils found only in the Mecklenburg County area.

The sunflower was a native of the prairies that once covered Charlotte and the county. It is also a federally protected species because of its rarity.

When a planned road expansion threatened about 50 Schweintz's sunflower plants, the Environmental Education and Conservation Division of the Mecklenburg County Parks and Recreation Department was called in to help.

The county had created the division in 1993 to meet public demand for environmental programming and implementation of long-range plans for the preservation and enhancement of wildlife habitats and natural areas. One of its efforts was to restore areas of the county to their prairie environments and preserve them for future generations.

With the help of UNC-Charlotte faculty, representatives from the Department of Transportation, the U.S. government, and the county sat down to discuss how best to protect the sunflowers while meeting transportation needs.

DOT agreed to pay $32,000 to relocate approximately 50 plants to two county parks. The county environmental education division supplied the labor.

The sunflowers found a new home at McDowell Park where they will be protected in perpetuity. Ultimately, 64 acres at Latta Plantation Park and the McDowell Park will be restored to prairie.

Mecklenburg County's role in this story would not be possible if it were not for the creation of the Environmental Education and Conservation Division.

With its focus, the Park and Recreation Department moved beyond mere land acquisition and into dedicated efforts to protect open space from development and encroachment.

Its Piedmont Prairie Restoration Project is unique in the southeast with its focus on proactive natural resource management planning.

The Piedmont Prairie Restoration Project stands alone because it will provide the county and others with vital information on how resource management works as a result of restoration efforts.

The resource management of the Environmental Education and Conservation Division go beyond open space. Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation is ensuring that natural areas are maintained and protected. These efforts will leave a lasting legacy for generations to come.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Dawn M. Fritz, public information coordinator, park and recreation department at 704-336-8460.

Human Services Category

Orange County
“Smart Start Dental Program”

The Orange County Health Department and the UNC School of Dentistry teamed up to conduct dental education and actual dental screening of 3,005 children from infant to five years old in 80 day care facilities over the course of two years.

The director of the Orange County Dental Clinic applied for a $29,575 grant from the Orange County Partnership for Young Children, which was created under Gov. Jim Hunt's Smart Start Program.

The goals of the Partnership were to develop long-range collaborative commitments among agencies providing services for young children and their families. It is a non-profit agency designed to implement the Smart Start initiative at the local level.

A local agency, Child Care Network, provided the Smart Start Dental Program organizers with telephone numbers, addresses and mailing labels for day care centers and family day care homes. Each facility received an information packet describing the program's objectives.

A team consisting of a dental hygiene and dental students, who were trained in school screenings, visited each center and home to educate the staff and children, and to screen the youngsters. A project coordinator arranged the visits and the dental clinic provided all the supplies.

The dental health education component delivered information on dental health, toothbrushing techniques, and actual toothbrushes. Each child also received a Parent Information Letter and a brochure entitled “Smart Start to Dental Health.”

In 1994, within one month, seven paired teams of dental and dental hygiene students completed screening exams of 1,400 children in 61 day care centers in Orange County. Replicated in 1995, using only four teams, 1,605 children were screened in 80 centers.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Angela Cooke, Smart Start dental clinic coordinator, 919-968-2040.

Robeson County
“Indigent Eye Care”

Working through the Robeson County Health Department, volunteer ophthalmologists and optometrists, created a vision clinic within the health department to serve two specific populations — the indigent and diabetics whose vision needs constantly change.

The program got its start when a retiring ophthalmologist, who worked in Robeson County, approached an optometrist on the Robeson County Board of Health about this need. Discussions about establishing a volunteer, full-service eye clinic began in June 1994.

The health department agreed to convert an unused dental exam room into a vision exam room. People in the community donated a slit lamp, a lensometer, a hydraulic exam chair with appropriate equipment and a projector with silver screen and mirrors. Equipment donations exceeded $7,000.

The retiring ophthalmologist and board of health optometrists provided training and staffed the vision clinic until they recruited their colleagues from the Robeson County community to donate their services as well. To serve the special needs of diabetics, registered nurses work with that population to accommodate their overall health needs. Since opening, the clinic has treated patients from three to 74 years old. The majority of patients are minorities, and most clients are female.

Two other organizations, the local Commission on the Blind and the local Lion's Club, are key players in the vision clinic. The Commission had a long waiting list of referrals to the clinic, so organizers did not have to rely on traditional media to get the word out.

The Commission continues to make referrals, one year after the clinic's startup. The Lion's Club helps the clinic obtain used and new eyeglasses.

The importance of this project is two-fold. First, it met the true needs of Robeson County residents. Second, because the impetus for the program came from within the health community, eye care providers quickly embraced and supported it.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact William J. Smith, health director, at 910-671-3200.

Martin County
“Martin JobLink Career Center”

The Mid-East Commission (regional council) and the Region Q Workforce Development Board established a seamless employment and training human services delivery system in Martin County.

The idea was to integrate services and functions, reduce duplication and build a customer friendly environment. Customers include adults and students seeking occupational information and employment, laid off workers, special populations such as welfare clients, older workers, individuals with disabilities, employers listing job vacancies, and new and expanding industries.

As one of the first actions taken, Region Q's workforce board established a Martin County Inter-Agency Committee as a first step in creating the Job Link Center.

The JobLink Center in Martin County is located in a space adjacent to the Employment Security Commission office. There are plans to co-locate staff from other partner agencies in the summer of 1996. The partners include vocational rehabilitation, the Martin County Department of Social Services, Services to the Blind, Title V Older Worker Programs, Martin Community College, etc. Staff in the JobLink Center can access employment security commission job information via computer.

The Region Q service delivery area staff was the first to be given such access to employment security data. As a result, the data exchange was made available to the other 25 service delivery areas. Region Q is also linked with the Internet, with its many other resources.

Future steps for the program include: e-mail capability, establishing a common applicant pool, coordinating employer contact with the Security Commission, forming integrated service teams composed of multi-agency personnel and automated record keeping.

The actual JobLink Career Center consists of three areas: client area, group area and individual service area. The client area include all aspects of client information, personalized assistance, and intake into available programs.

The group area includes all group facilities for informational briefings, orientation sessions, educational programs, group counseling, employer seminars and specialized classes.

The individual service area includes staff work areas, individual employer interview areas, telephone assistance and a special services work area.

A continuum of services ranging from self-service to case management assistance will be provided through a combination of electronic linkages and interagency staffs. Customers who do not need case management services will have access to computer work stations and telephones to work at self-directed activities.

This project paved the way for a new environment where service agencies solved customer privacy issues that have been a barrier to merging data, while still protecting the client's rights.

The ultimate beneficiary is the citizen of North Carolina who needs the service and the employers of North Carolina who need a quality workforce.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Robert J. Paciocco, executive director of the Mid-East Commission, at 919-946-8043.

Alamance County
“Early Defibrillation Program”

Minutes may mean life or death to a person in cardiac arrest. If cardiac pulmonary resuscitation and defibrillation using an automated heart starter unit can both begin within eight to 10 minutes of cardiac arrest, the patient has a 30 to 40 percent survival rate. Without that quick intervention, the survival rate drops to a dismal 8 percent.

Alamance County wanted to give those heart patients a better chance by allowing their first responders, primarily firemen, the ability to use defibrillation.

State law required that only emergency medical technicians with 120 hours of training could use the defibrillation units. Most of those people were members of the ambulance crew, which usually arrived on the scene several minutes after the first responders.

Alamance County petitioned the Board of Medical Examiners to allow the county to implement an early defibrillation program. The Board denied the county's request so Alamance sued the state. As a result of an administrative hearing, the Board approved a study program on defibrillation and directed the Office of Emergency Medical Services to prepare new rules to allow early defibrillation statewide.

Since implementing the program in October 1995, more than 171 people have recieved training in CPR and on an automated external defibrillator. Most of these people are medical responders, county jailers and volunteer fireman. They have received 16 hours of training.

Alamance County did not incur any expenses in implementing this program. The county arranged for free training at a local community college for police and firemen. Two local industries involved in the defibrillation program paid $35 for each person enrolled in the course from their companies.

The fire department bought a defibrillator unit using fire tax revenues, while the county jail bought its unit with money from drug dealer forfeitures. The county was able to buy the units through a federal contract which lowered the cost as well.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Joanne Garner, Alamance County personnel department, at 910-228-1312.

General Government Category

Macon County
“Peggy Crosby Community Service Center”

Even though southern Macon County is only 18 miles from the county seat of Franklin, the drive takes 45 minutes to an hour in good weather and is sometimes impossible with or without a four-wheel drive vehicle in the winter.

This means that the population of 2,700 remains an isolated pocket and a challenge for those organizations delivering services to them.

In 1994, a core group of county agencies and non-profits such as the Macon Program for Progress, decided to use a building vacated by a regional hospital as a satellite office within the community to see if residents would use the services if they were readily accessible.

The Highlands-Cashiers Hospital agreed to allow two county agencies, health and aging, and three community non-profits to use the facility until it was sold or until the agencies found another permanent home.

The core group had agreed to be a visible presence in the community for a year to determine the area's needs. The community greeted the idea with delight. In fact, residents were so excited that they started raising money to buy the old hospital building.

The Highlands-Cashiers Hospital successfully approached the Duke Endowment Fund and the Kate B. Reynolds Foundation to donate money for remodeling.

Meanwhile, more agencies asked to be included in the project so the core group and new participants established a private, non-profit to govern the facility and to create a governing board composed of representatives from the core group and newer members.

The center, now called the Peggy Crosby Community Center, is home to 14 county and community organizations. They continue to work out the kinks of “working together” and fine-tuning their individual programs to meet the needs of the community.

The group has learned that prospective donors are more likely to finance groups that work together as a team rather than individuals duplicating each others' efforts. The average cost per agency is $1,500 per year with the bulk of additional operating expenses paid for through grants and donations.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Jan Cabe McClure, director of the department of aging, at 704-349-2060.

Person County
“Public Library/WRNC TV Storytime”

With a hand-held movie camera, some microphones and a pile of books and volunteers, the Person County Library brings the love of reading to young children via its half-an-hour television show called “Storytime.”

The library wanted to proactively encourage reading outside the traditional confines of the public library so they approached a local cable company about airing a show using volunteers to read books to children.

Library organizers thought a televised storytime could help young children better prepare for school. If children learn to love reading at a young age, that experience could help them attain a healthier attitude toward learning in their school years.

The television station, WRNC-TV, had teamed up with the library to promote a survey on citizens' use of library services and was open to taking on another joint project. The library split the cost of a video camera with the county manager's office and bought its own video cassette tapes. Combining those items with the cost of staff time, the library managed to produce 52 Storytime shows for less than $1,000.

Storytime appears twice a week in the mornings, so children can watch it at home or at their day care centers. The WRNC station manager is currently trying to find a weekly night spot for the show as well.

The biggest hurdle was for the library director, assistant director and children's librarian to learn the tricks of video, audio, scripting the show's beginning and end, and how to go “on-location” for certain segments. The librarians taught themselves the basics while performing their other duties.

Volunteer readers come from all walks of life — teachers, parents, bankers, ministers, city councilmen, county commissioners and the county manager.

Library staff wanted the show to represent a diverse populace to show that all kinds of people like to read. These were people who took the time to READ ALOUD, which is very beneficial to young children, but something that is not done enough in today's busy society.

Because the childrens' librarian opens and closes the Storytime program, she has received wide exposure in the county.

Feedback indicates support in the community, with many adults com- menting that they are pleased that the volunteer readers are participating. Segments featuring stories written by students in grades four through seven were big hits.

For more information, contact John R. Zika, Person County library director, at 910-597-7881.

Mecklenburg County
“Charlotte's WEB”

In 1994, Mecklenburg County and the City of Charlotte teamed up and launched Charlotte's Web, which was designed to provide a comprehensive electronic infrastructure and network of services for the region.

The idea originated in the library system after a group of citizens approached staff about a community network.

The partners identified three critical problems that the project would address:

1. Equity of access: How can communities assure that all citizens have equal access to the information infrastructure despite barriers or socioeconomic status, rural or inner city isolation or physical handicap?
2. End user training and support: How can communities assure that all citizens have the necessary skills to navigate the information highway, and to communicate and process information to take full advantage of this new technology?
3. Service delivery: How can health and human services agencies, local government, educational institutions and others best package and present their information to take full advantage of the electronic environment and interact with citizens?

The key to the project's success is the diverse and broad participation of numerous groups. Initial partners with the library were Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools, Johnson C. Smith University, Central Piedmont Community College and WTVI, a locally-owned PBS affiliate. In 1995, the project focused on reaching outward to surrounding counties and on reaching inward to isolated inner city neighborhoods.

The partners increased to include a broad spectrum of human services, educational, corporate and grassroots organizations including: UNC- Charlotte, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Education Foundation, Regional HIV/AIDS Consortium, Microsoft, BellSouth, Charlotte Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise Community Empowerment Zone, Employment Security Commission of North Carolina, City of Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, Homeless Services Network, Programs for Accessible Living, and Centralina Council of Governments and many others.

More than 100 public access computers are in place today — at homeless shelters, library branches, park and recreation centers, boys' and girls' clubs, transportation centers, and senior centers, so that anyone, regardless of socioeconomic status has access to the equipment.

Training via classes, phone calls, e-mail and online help is extensive and ongoing. There is 24-hour access to city and county agencies, including the health department, building and standards and environmental protection.

There is direct access to daily building permits, land development standards, bus schedules, meeting agendas, public issue discussion groups and electronic forms.

Today, the project still depends heavily on donated equipment and volunteer support. Computers donated by individuals and corporations are checked and recycled for use as public access terminals.

Charlotte's Web was primarily developed with a $450,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Department. It continues to be sup- ported with a second NTIA grant of $500,000. Grants have allowed the library to hire five staff to operate and maintain the Web.

The system has received additional monies from the National Library of Medicine, Microsoft Corporation and the Bryan Family Fund. Major equipment donations were made by Price Waterhouse and Kennedy, Covington, Lobdell & Hickman companies.

More than 250 active community and corporate volunteers are instru- mental in this grassroots project, donating time and expertise in such areas as training, file maintenance, and computer repair.

Organizers say that Charlotte's Web is meeting its vision, mission statement, and overall objectives.

Charlotte's Web received the 1995 Public Technology Institute's Achievement/SOLUTIONS Award in the category of Computer Technology and Telecommunications, which led to the designation of the library system as National Library of the Year for 1995-96.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Robert E. Cannon, executive director, public library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County, 704-336-4146.

Cleveland County
“Intranet”

The Cleveland County Intranet was designed as a mechanism to facilitate communication and inform- ation. Capabilities of the Intranet provide for countywide electronic mail, group discussion, posting of newsletters, and a central information window into data such as policies and procedures.

Cleveland County had begun moving to its computer language called TCP/IP several years ago. The Intranet directly takes advantage of this technology for implementation. By taking advantage of existing computer hardware, the cost of establishing the Intranet was low. Each department purchased a software package for their computers to access the Intranet.

Existing data processing staff learned the new technology and software. The learning process was quick and, once training was completed, implementation went smoothly. The software was not difficult to install.

The Cleveland County Intranet is used for:

• Posting policies and procedures: The entire personnel ordinance is easily accessible in electronic form. This has eliminated the need for revisions of the ordinance to be copied and distributed to departments. Any employee who is attached to the Intranet can access the personnel ordinance. In the past, primarily department heads or personnel representatives kept a copy. Users can be assured that the personnel ordinance being viewed electronically is always the most current. Finance department policies are also available on the Intranet.
• Posting minutes of the board of county commissioners and department head meetings: Approved minutes are posted for internal viewing.
• Posting scheduled meetings, agendas and internal staff directory.
• Posting county position vacancies, with the list of positions updated weekly.
• Posting of deadlines and holidays, such as deadlines for inclusion on the commissioners' agenda, deadlines for finance, and related items.
• Publishing department home pages: This allows departments to publish information of interest to their employees in a separate area of the Intranet. Each department determines content and layout of this area.
• Electronic mail communication: All users can send electronic mail to correspond with each other. Cleveland County had implemented a proprietary e-mail package several years ago, but the cost and resource requirements of this e-mail system did not allow wide- spread implementation. The new e-mail system is not proprietary, and can be accessed by many different vendor brands of e-mail.

The primary objective of the project, which was to increase colla- boration and sharing of information between departments, was met.

A long-range goal is for every employee to have access to the Intranet. The content will continue to grow rapidly, as departments find new things that should be shared.

Online discussion groups and other group collaboration mechanisms will become widely available over the next few years. As the Intranet grows in size and content, Cleveland County will be a more efficient government because of it.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Scott Fite, MIS director, 704-484-4972.

Randolph County
“Linked Information for Emergencies (L.I.F.E.)”

Responding to the frustrating experiences citizens, visitors, and emergency response agencies encountered when trying to report emergencies or obtain help, Randolph County decided to totally integrate and automate its systems over the last three years. The county estimated that one of every three emergency calls was received by the wrong agency. Within Randolph County there were 18 emergency numbers and five dispatch centers.

The county used 11 additional temporary staff to assist in field work, education and implementation of an addressing system, including two retired postmasters.

The county wanted to avoid the possibility of a resident having a different mail and 911 address. The postal service found the system so proficient that they adopted the 911 address as the official address.

The county spent $400,000 over two years on its addressing system, which includes a Map book that emergency personnel keep in their vehicles. The books are updated and available to the public for $25.

Using its GIS database, the county devised a Master Street Address Guide. To make 911 a success, the county had to convince the five dispatch centers to give up control so that a central coordinating point for multi-agency response could be coordinated.

The county manager designated the county's emergency services department as the central point. Dispatch personnel were transferred and central dispatch agreements were signed with public safety agencies, creating Randolph County's first central dispatch center.

The county chose a vendor out of Logan, UT, to provide the software to link all agencies together, rather than writing the software and doing the programming in-house.

There was some hesitation about using a software system that had never been used in North Carolina, but Randolph County had found a lack of available software packages to meet its criteria and goals.

The county purchased an IBM Risc 6000 computer to run the software. Since the county used that equipment for GIS, the purchase ensured compatibility and simplicity for staff.

In 1993 the county implemented computer-aided dispatching, enhanced 911, jail management and sheriff office's records management. In 1994, the county added three other city police departments.

In 1995, it added 19 fire depart- ments, medical rescue and emergency medical services. In 1996, the county added two additional police departments.

The county paid for all equipment and training. To date, it has spent $300,000 on hardware and software. Nearly 350 public safety personnel have been trained on the computer system and its associated programs through the local community college.

With this software, all agencies share the same name and address database as well as call history at that location. Dispatchers know how many domestic violence calls have been placed from a particular address, whether residents there show violent behavior towards emergency personnel, or if there are outstanding warrants at a particular address.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Neil Allen, emergency services director; Annette Lineberry, data processing manager; or Frank Willis, county manager at 910-318-6302.