Ethics awards

King County employees are honored at 2008 Board of Ethics leadership reception

During its leadership reception on September 9, 2008, the Board of Ethics acknowledged the work of county employees for their commitment in supporting its goal of helping employees make ethical decisions, and for their professional skills and personal dedication in promoting the highest ethical standards within King County. The board also recognized two former board members for their unique and significant contributions.

Arlene Sanvictores, Senior Deputy Ombudsman

Arlene Sanvictores, senior deputy Ombudsman.
For 34 years, Arlene Sanvictores has served the county in the Ombudsman’s office, a parallel agency to the ethics office. The agencies are located within different branches of government, but may overlap if one of the Ombudsman’s findings should be appealed to the Board of Ethics. For this reason, Ombudsman and ethics staff must maintain a professional distance on certain matters to respect that process. However, there is a real benefit for the two offices to communicate well and to support each other’s goals. Working with the ethics office, Arlene Sanvictores has always demonstrated the highest standards and a collegial style by sharing appropriate information, strategizing about approaches to the work, and serving as a trusted resource to think through ethical dilemmas. Thank you, Arlene.

Front row (left to right): Ron Weigelt, Nancy Schaefer, Gail Ohashi, Patti Cole-Tindall
Back row (left to right): Lance King, Bob Railton, Elizabeth Causby-Miles, Rich Watson, Michael Frawley
Not pictured: Mary Beth Short, Kerry Delaney, Anita Whitfield

Anita Whitfield, director, and Michael Frawley, deputy director, Human Resources Division, accepted an award for their division, and on behalf of the Ethics Partners.
The Board of Ethics and ethics office serve all King County employees and elected officials. The board and office are staffed by 1.5 full-time employees. For this reason, the ethics office is fortunate to have a remarkable, collaborative working relationship with the Human Resources Division. HRD has developed an effective, efficient communications network throughout the county and this structure has helped the ethics office to reach out to all departments in a way that it could not do on its own. Anita Whitfield and Michael Frawley have welcomed this collaboration and responded positively to proposals from the ethics office to promote and measure ethics standards county-wide. In addition, the senior service delivery managers serve as a significant link for the ethics office to their departments and since 2006 hold the honorary title of Ethics Partner. Without the vision of county leadership and the work of the Ethics Partners, the ethics program would not be what it is today.

Former Board of Ethics members Rev. Paul Pruitt and Dr. Margo Gordon

Rev. Paul Pruitt
Rev. Pruitt has served the Board of Ethics from 1992 – 2008. He has been a thoughtful and insightful contributor to board discussions and decisions through his tenure.

Dr. Margo Gordon
Dr. Gordon has served the Board of Ethics from 1999 – 2008. She is the primary author of the Statement of Principles, a document that identifies common bonds among public employees, enhances the public’s trust in local government, and facilitates principled, ethical approaches and practices in our local governments.

The Board of Ethics and Executive Director Catherine Clemens also acknowledge the King County Council’s Office Manager, Carolyn Woolf, and Peter Toliver, administrative specialist for the office of the Board of Ethics, for their important assistance in arranging the leadership reception.

Thank you to all 2008 award recipients!