District Attorney’s Office Earns Innovation Award

Winners of the County of Marin’s 2014 Innovation Recognition Awards – the lnnys – were presented crystal trophies during the May 20 Marin County Board of Supervisors meeting to memorialize achievements in employee creativity and teamwork.

The District Attorney's Office received the 2014 lnny Award for its Jeannette Prandi Children's Center Educational Film Production project. The Department of Health & Human Services was runner-up for an e-newsletter and team-building project called the HHS Insider. Earning honorable mention was the Human Resources Department for its Leadership Academy, a collaboration with Dominican University of California.

“Embracing and encouraging innovation is a focused strategy here as the County tries to keep pace with a rapidly changing environment,” said Deputy County Administrator Daniel Eilerman, introducing the item on behalf of an interdepartmental team of County employees who organized the second-annual awards program.

For the past four years, the District Attorney's Office has partnered with the Jeanette Prandi Children's Center to produce a series of short educational films to address social media issues such as cyberbullying and sexting – volunteering along with students and residents with entertainment industry experience. Students who see the films are guided through a discussion and encouraged to share concerns, experiences and solutions to the issues. 

“The judges decided this project represented a proactive, collaborative effort to target difficult problems among the County's youth at minimal cost and for an impactful gain,” Eilerman said.

Modeled after the California State Association of Counties' (CSAC) Challenge Awards, the County's lnny awards program is intended to recognize the many innovative efforts already in place at the County, and to build momentum toward additional and even bolder innovation ahead.

Ten applications from eight departments were received during the nomination period, and each department was commended by the Board of Supervisors for their innovative efforts. Eilerman said the impressive nominations made for a spirited discussion and evaluation among the judges, which included graduates of the Spring 2012 Dominican Leadership Academy who participated in a capstone project on “creating a culture of innovation” within the County government.

“All of these projects showcase the talents of our County workforce combined with a strong commitment to excellence in public service,” Board President Kathrin Sears said. “While not all submissions can be formally recognized with awards, all those departments that submitted entries are to be commended for their support and demonstration of innovation at the County of Marin.”

For more about the Inny Awards, see the May 20 board letter.