Toll Road Proposed on Highway 37

Faced with a multibillion-dollar price tag to ease congestion on Highway 37 and protect the critical North Bay artery from rising sea levels, State Sen. Bill Dodd (D-Napa) Friday proposed a novel funding solution — turn the route into a toll road.

Flanked by North Bay transportation, business and environmental leaders on a bluff at Sonoma Raceway overlooking Highway 37, Dodd introduced legislation he authored that would allow the state to immediately collect tolls from motorists between Sears Point and Mare Island.

Dodd said the bill, if passed and signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, would kickstart fixes for the vital corridor that sees 40,000 vehicles per day.

“The time is now to improve this essential artery that connects us to jobs and supports our economy,” Dodd said. “If we don’t act, increased traffic and sea level rise will make an already bad situation simply unpassable. Without a dedicated revenue source, the problem won’t be fixed in many of our lifetimes.”

Details, including the amount of the toll, the means of collecting the money and projects it will fund will be determined at future public meetings, Dodd said. A $5 to $6 toll could generate up to $650 million over 20 years, Dodd said, which could be borrowed up front and used to attract state and federal funding to remake the highway.

The measure has the support of the business community, said Cynthia Murray, president of the North Bay Leadership Council. A remade Highway 37 will help move goods and workers across the North Bay, she said.

But a taxpayer group called the potential toll a “regressive tax” that would hit the pocketbooks of working class wage earners who commute from Solano County to jobs in Sonoma and Marin counties. David Wolfe, legislative director for the Sacramento-based Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, said the group doesn’t oppose toll roads as long as they run parallel to an established route to give commuters a free option.

“To the extent that a toll road is built in California, it needs to be optional,” he said. “With Highway 37, you don’t have that option. It strikes me as a very regressive tax for Solano County residents who commute to work.”

Some estimates put the total cost of Highway 37 improvements at $4 billion for the entire 21-mile road that passes through Marin, Sonoma and Solano counties from Novato to Vallejo. Projects include widening the highway to four lanes and elevating it on a causeway above the rising San Pablo Bay waters.

Officials estimate sea level rise will submerge Highway 37 within 30 years if no action is taken.

“We recognize that the challenges of severe traffic congestion from growing population and season flooding that currently plague Highway 37 will be dramatically magnified by sea level rise, and a solution is required, “ said Eamon O’Byrne, executive director of Sonoma Land Trust.

Supervisor David Rabbitt, chairman of a four-county committee focused on Highway 37 improvements, said a dedicated funding source from a toll would expedite work on the corridor.

“While I am proud that we have made some steps, this legislation is a giant leap forward,” he said. “It changes the game.”

North Bay transportation officials have applied for state funding for several preliminary projects along Highway 37, said Suzanne Smith, executive director of the Sonoma County Transportation Authority. Planning and environmental work is underway through a grant from SB1, the state gas tax increase.

The California Transportation Commission in June could award the North Bay $30 million in SB1 funds to build a new roundabout at the junction of Highway 37 and Highway 121 near Sonoma Raceway, Smith said. She acknowledged that commuters may not like paying a toll, but she said a “user fee” is the only way to fund all of the projects.

“Funding major infrastructure takes a lot of revenue,” she said. “That’s how we do large infrastructure. We need to look under every rock. If we want to use this corridor, we need to pay for it.”

Highway 37 is also slated to receive $100 million from Regional Measure 3, the Bay Area bridge toll increase that voters approved in 2018. Those funds, though, are on hold while a lawsuit is pending at the state appellate court.

The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association sued saying the measure amounted to a tax increase since it proposed spending bridge tolls on projects other than bridge maintenance and should have required a two-thirds vote of approval.

Dodd said the Highway 37 toll could be collected by the Bay Area Infrastructure Financing Authority, which uses FasTrak scanners mounted on drivers’ dashboards to collect tolls on Bay Area express lanes.

Jake Mackenzie, a Rohnert Park city councilman and former chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, said Highway 37 was originally built as a private toll road before the state purchased the right-of-way in the 1930s. He has a souvenir toll ticket with the original price: 35 cents.

“You can be assured that this toll will be greater than 35 cents,” he said.

https://www.petaluma360.com/news/10735242-181/toll-road-proposed-for-hwy?sba=AAS

Novato Community Hospital in Marin County’s New Chief Administrator Shannon Thomas

Shannon Thomas is chief administrative and nursing officer at Sutter Health’s Novato Community Hospital in Marin County.

Describe a single specific challenge your organization faced last year and why it posed such a challenge. What measures have you taken to overcome the challenge?

The late October, Sonoma County fires and power outages tested the strength of our integrated network for the Sutter system. At Sutter’s Novato Community Hospital, we were able to successfully absorb patients and staff from the surrounding area who had lost power at their businesses and homes. We were able to get through the event without interruption to the inpatient and emergency department services we provide.

Mental health services have become a focus of health care providers in the North Bay since the series of wildfires. For your patients, what strategies have you employed to address this issue? For your employees, what are the challenges faced by your organization in addressing their post-fire needs?

At Novato Community Hospital, we offer our patients 24/7 access to telepsychiatry and work closely with Marin County resources to provide as many services as are available to us. Additionally, Sutter has provided a robust Employee Assistance Program with additional resources directed specifically for those employees affected by the wildfires. During times of active fires or evacuations, an EAP representative has been onsite ready to support staff.

What obstacles are policy and politics putting in the way of providing quality health care? How much do these challenge your organization’s ability to serve patients?

Outpatient primary care access is an identified need in Marin County, which is why we are working closely with our Sutter Pacific Medical Foundation partners and community providers to help fill this gap. Sutter also recently opened Sutter Walk-in Care in the Hamilton Shopping Plaza (5800 Nave Drive, Suite F, Novato) as an affordable and accessible access point for care for the community. The clinic is open 12 hours a day, seven days a week.

What specific accomplishment of your organization in the past year or so do you wish to highlight, and why?

In 2019, Novato Community Hospital was the only hospital in Marin County to earn a Leapfrog Hospital Rating A. We were recently recertified by the Joint Commission as a primary stroke center and for our advanced certification for total joints program, one of only three with an advanced certification in Northern California, and one of only 115 in the United States.

Tell us one person or situation connected to your organization inspired you in the past year and why it was so memorable.

A favorite part of my job is receiving thank-you notes from patients. One of the most memorable came recently from a patient discharged after a long stay in our intensive care unit. In the letter, this patient thanked each staff member who cared for her by name and included details of what each person had done to make a difference in her life. She closed by stating that the Novato Community Hospital team gave her a new outlook on life and that she was aspiring to become a nurse. Letters like this make me enormously proud of the team at NCH.

What your two of your organization’s biggest goals for 2020?

Our goals for 2020 are to improve on the exceptional personalized care that we deliver every day to our patients and families. Our efforts will be focused on ensuring that every interaction we have with our patients is personalized and patient centered. Novato Community Hospital turns 20 this year, so we will be doing a lot of celebrating with the staff, our patients, and the community.

Do you have growth plans for your organization this year, such as adding services or increasing staff?

In 2019, we doubled our volume for our total joints program and increased our total surgical volume by 27%. We will continue to focus on improving the surgical experience for our patients and their families.

https://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/northbay/marincounty/10735001-181/shannon-thomas-leaders-health-care?taid=5e50b6596831d00001c4cdc1

Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital’s New CEO

Dan Peterson is CEO of Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital in Sonoma County. From 2017 until early this year, he was CEO of Sutter Lakeside Hospital.

Describe a single specific challenge your organization faced last year and why it posed such a challenge. What measures have you taken to overcome the challenge?

Last fall, Sutter Lakeside Hospital, where I was CEO at the time, was faced with the prospect of losing power due to the public safety power shutoffs.

In a health care setting, with patients’ life-sustaining care at stake, the potential loss of power takes on a whole new level of seriousness. To prepare, we practiced power outage drills and educated staff on how to ready their homes and families. As a result of our advance work, despite a full week of power loss to the hospital, we were able to provide uninterrupted care to our patients.

As I transition to CEO of Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital, I bring with me the knowledge of how to navigate any future public safety power shutoff.

Mental health services have become a focus of health care providers in the North Bay since the series of wildfires. For your patients, what strategies have you employed to address this issue? For your employees, what are the challenges faced by your organization in addressing their post-fire needs?

We know we can’t expect our staff to perform at their best if they’re worried about the safety of their families and homes.

At Sutter Health, patient care starts with employee care—and that means ensuring our staff is mentally strong and resilient. Following the fires and power shutoffs of the last few years, Sutter has invested millions of dollars into a robust employee assistance program, which provides employees 24-7 access to counselors, financial assistance and guidance. We’ve seen firsthand that when employees feel supported, they are able focus their minds on providing the exceptional, high-quality patient care we’re known for.

What specific accomplishment of your organization in the past year or so do you wish to highlight?

A cornerstone of our mission at Sutter is to connect the community with the health care and resources they need to achieve their best health. With that in mind, our biggest accomplishment at Sutter Lakeside Hospital was keeping patients safe, managing evacuations and ensuring employee well-being during the Kincade Fire. Our staff worked tirelessly to ensure the facility remained secure, functional and able to reopen as quickly as possible — in the same way Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital staff did during the Tubbs Fire.

I plan to continue this same level of connection and commitment to the community in my new leadership role at Sutter Santa Rosa.

Tell us one person or situation connected to your organization inspired you in the past year.

At Sutter Lakeside, hospital emergency department physicians recently started a bridge program to help patients with a history of drug abuse transition into appropriate outpatient programs.

One memorable example of the effectiveness of this program was a patient who returned to the emergency department because she could not get into a follow-up program quickly enough. Because she was treated by the same care team, a rapport developed and the patient felt comfortable opening up about her situation.

It turned out she was a victim of sex trafficking. Through the bridge program, staff were able to transition her into the appropriate medical care and involve the necessary parties to ensure she could begin a new life in a safer environment. This example of well-planned and executed integrated care is something I’m eager to bring to my new role as CEO of Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital.

What are your organization’s biggest goals for 2020?

We are focused on delivering coordinated, high-quality health care when, where and how people need it. We’re looking at innovative ways to enhance the patient experience, whether that’s finding novel ways to decrease patients’ length of stay, offering cutting-edge medical procedures or refining our safety measures. These efforts together will help ensure we’re continuing to provide the Santa Rosa community with health care that is integrated, accessible, inclusive and affordable.

Do you have growth plans for your organization this year?

The expansion of Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital is underway, adding hundreds of construction jobs to the local economy. When it is complete in 2022, it will add 40 more hospital beds, more treatment areas in the emergency department, and additional surgical suites.

Sutter Santa Rosa also recently reopened its remodeled outpatient infusion therapy center on Airway Drive, offering patients a calming setting to receive their prescribed chemotherapy or other intravenous medications.

https://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/northbay/sonomacounty/10734958-181/dan-peterson-leaders-health-care?taid=5e5053f8ee23af000132301e

California Bill Would Convert Highway 37 to Tolls to Fund Upgrades to Critical North Bay Commute,Transportation Link

A bill that would create a tolling authority to raise capital for necessary improvements for Highway 37, a congested east-west link also known for flooding, was introduced Friday in the state Legislature.

The bill, by state Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Napa, hopes to generate revenue from tolls and then use the money to leverage state and federal funding sources to complete the needed overhaul. How that would work, and what the design of the improved roadway would look like, are yet to be decided.

“The time in now to improve this essential artery that connects us to jobs and supports our economy,” Sen. Dodd stated in the announcement. “If we don’t act, increased traffic and sea level rise will make an already bad situation simply unpassable. Without a dedicated revenue source, the problem won’t be fixed in many of our lifetimes. I introduced this bill to increase capacity for today’s commuters and make the route sustainable for future generations.”

Highway 37 runs along the northern edge of San Pablo Bay. The senator’s office estimated 40,000 cars and trucks cross it each day. That number is expected to increase nearly 50 percent, to 58,000 vehicles, over the 20 years. “At the same time, a recent UC Davis study found that sea level rise will make the highway impossible to use by the end of the century, with serious periods of flooding expected annually in the coming decades.”

The proposal is supported by stakeholders in Sonoma, Solano, Napa and Marin counties.

“The shores of the northern San Pablo Bay are the last large expanse of wetlands left in the Bay Area,” said Sonoma Land Trust Executive Director Eamon O’Byrne. “Protecting and restoring these wetlands offers a crucial and urgent opportunity to safeguard critical wildlife habitat and buffer the impacts of sea level rise on our vital infrastructure. Sonoma Land Trust looks forward to continuing the collaboration around the redesign of Highway 37 and applauds Senator Dodd for his leadership.”

“Highway 37 is the lifeline of the North Bay for commuters and the movement of goods,” said Cynthia Murray, president and CEO of North Bay Leadership Council. “We applaud Sen. Dodd’s introduction of a bill to allow tolling so that much-needed improvements can be made. The ability to raise funding is key to the economic health and public safety of the North Bay.”

https://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/northbay/sonomacounty/10735135-181/highway-37-toll-road-sonoma-marin-napa-solano?trk_msg=9LIBD5ERP88K9F3IHAUI2TGOD0&trk_contact=QU0HFLSLRS4B321O7DHC8BRSRS&trk_module=new&trk_sid=3V6J63Q1ICC8RVMOJ8HERCPJKK&utm_email=F4C3C49D05C565A25532D4913D&utm_source=listrak&utm_medium=email&utm_term=http%3a%2f%2fwww.northbaybusinessjournal.com%2fnorthbay%2fsonomacounty%2f10735135-181%2fhighway-37-toll-road-sonoma-marin-napa-solano&utm_campaign=nbbj_daily

North Bay Children’s Center’s Founder Susan Gilmore is a Remarkable Woman

n honor of International Women’s Month coming up in March, KRON4 is revealing the four finalists of our Remarkable Women contest.

This week, we’re telling you why Susan Gilmore is a finalist.

The mission of the North Bay Children’s Center in Novato is to provide high quality educational services for low income families and children-at-risk for over 30 years.

“Infants, toddlers, preschoolers, we provide before and after school care for after school-aged children,” Gilmore explains.

It’s the vision of former preschool teacher Susan Gilmore. She is the founder, president and CEO of NBCC.

“When we opened our doors we had 60 children, the majority of which were low income, single moms and we now serve over 600 children at 13 locations between Marin and Sonoma County,” Gilmore said.

NBCC was the first education program in the North Bay to provide subsidies for infants and toddlers – a big help for working families.

“To be able to get back into the workforce and to be able to live and work here in the Bay Area,” Gilmore said.

“It really changed my life because now I can work Monday through Friday and spend the weekend with my kids,” said parent Maria Sabido.

NBCC also provides opportunities for employees to fulfill their dreams of going to college.

“I am currently attending the College of Marin and working towards my AA,” said Lily Cervantes.

But perhaps the thing that Susan Gilmore is most proud of is the Garden of Eatin program which is recognized by the USDA as a model for nutritional education in a childhood setting.

“We started that program 11 years ago in response to the obesity epidemic and looking at what we can do to prevent this,” Gilmore said.

Remarkable Women: Founder of the North Bay Children’s Center

Canine Companions for Independence Service Dog Program Expands to Help Veterans with PTSD

In October 2008, Army Captain Alli LaCombe of Keller, TX, was just two weeks away from coming home from her second deployment in Iraq when her life changed in an instant. Her unit was in the countryside preparing a space for incoming American troops when insurgents broke through the perimeter of the site and a firefight broke out. Responding to the commotion, LaCombe stepped outside her tent without protective gear. After hearing gunshots, she turned to retrieve her gear when a rifle round smashed into her spine, leaving her permanently paralyzed from the waist down.

After being airlifted to a hospital in Germany, LaCombe underwent multiple surgeries to remove shrapnel fragments from her spine (though some remain in her body to this day). From there, she was transferred to Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio for six intense, arduous months of physical therapy.

Finally, LaCombe returned to her home in Keller, which unfortunately was not wheelchair accessible. The house had two stories, and most doorways were not wide enough for a wheelchair. Those circumstances made everyday activities, like going into the bathroom or taking a shower, a serious challenge for LaCombe.

A soldier’s courage

Once she was finally home, LaCombe struggled to maintain the personal independence and self-sufficiency she had always prized. As she tried to cope with her physical limitations and the feelings of depression that accompanied that struggle, a friend suggested getting a service dog. Initially, LaCombe balked, believing that others needed that form of help more than she did.

Months turned into years, and LaCombe finally hit a turning point after she fell out of her wheelchair twice trying to retrieve objects from the floor. The second fall tore the rotator cuff in her left shoulder, and after six additional months of therapy, LaCombe decided canine assistance might be the right choice after all.

“I could lie down and cry and whine, or I could accept my circumstances and move forward,” LaCombe says. Summoning a soldier’s courage, she chose the latter course.

LaCombe was united with her new best friend, Erik, a Labrador/Golden Retriever cross, in November 2016, and her life hasn’t been the same since. He’s her constant companion, and when she shops, he can assist in handing her credit card to astounded cashiers.

“Thanks to Erik, I no longer have to depend on others out in public,” LaCombe says.

The healing power of dogs

LaCombe found her new companion through Canine Companions for Independence, a California-based nonprofit organization recognized worldwide for the excellence of its dog-training program and for the quality and longevity of the matches it makes between dogs and people.

In Sept. 2014, Baylor Scott & White Health announced a collaboration with Canine Companions, which included the construction of a Texas training center in Irving. The facility was named Canine Companions for Independence at Baylor Scott & White Health – Kinkeade Campus in honor of United States District Judge Ed Kinkeade, who played a major role in establishing the collaboration.

Establishing an ongoing relationship with Canine Companions for Independence was a natural extension of Baylor Scott & White Health’s care continuum. Theirs is the nation’s first collaboration between a healthcare system and an assistance dog organization.

“Canine Companions for Independence is a unique national organization with sophisticated canine geneticists, a collaborative research team and experienced trainers,” Judge Kinkeade said.

Since its inception in a California home office in 1975, Canine Companions for Independence has grown into a nationwide organization that provides assistance dogs for individuals with disabilities. There are now six Canine Companions training centers across the country, including the Kinkeade campus in Irving.

Those who qualify to apply for the program include people with physical or developmental disabilities, adults who are deaf or hard of hearing, and professionals working in healthcare, visitation, educational or criminal justice settings who can demonstrate that an assistance dog will enhance their independence or quality of life.

The comprehensive application process begins with an exchange of basic information to make sure the program will be a good fit for the applicant’s needs. Experienced Canine Companions for Independence staff review the applicant’s needs and qualifications to determine if the process will continue. If the applicant is accepted, their wait time can vary depending on the kind of canine assistance they need. Canine Companions strives to invite each candidate to be matched with an assistance dog within 12 months; however, class invitations rely on availability of suitable dogs.

The dogs — Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers and Lab/Golden crosses — are trained for up to two years and are valued at about $50,000 for the lifetime of the dog, but recipients pay nothing for their dog. After receiving some basic training from volunteers, the dogs are taken to one of the six regional training centers for more advanced work, during which they learn up to 40 assistance commands. Once matched with their recipient, the dogs work for about eight years, after which they can retire and spend their golden years as pets.

Even after they place a dog in a home, Canine Companions for Independence follows up with every team for the lifetime of the placement. This includes in-person visits, reunions, workshops, and phone or email support — even a 24/7 help line for emergencies. Recipients are personally and financially responsible for meeting the dog’s day-to-day needs, including food, veterinary care, exercise and grooming.

Program expands to veterans with PTSD

To assist the number of military personnel returning from service with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), Canine Companions for Independence launched a pilot program to place service dogs with veterans with PTSD in 2015. In this facet of the program, dogs are trained to perform tasks that include nightmare interruption, turning on lights, retrieving items and supporting their handler in crowded public situations that might provoke anxiety.

The campus in Irving is the third Canine Companions location in the United States to grow its programming to serve veterans with PTSD. To date, the organization has placed over 300 service dogs with veterans nationwide, and Alli LaCombe is one of them. While LaCombe’s service dog was matched to help with her physical disabilities, the expanded PTSD program will offer specific training to support veterans diagnosed with PTSD.

Since their graduation from the program, LaCombe and Erik have been inseparable companions, and LaCombe now lives a robust and fulfilling life. She works full-time for the State of Texas.

In addition to being her constant companion in all these activities, Erik potentially saved LaCombe’s life during a near-tragic incident in July 2019. Because severe spinal cord injuries interfere with the body’s normal responses to heat and cold, LaCombe suffered a heat stroke and lost consciousness. Erik began barking to summon help, and when colleagues and emergency medical personnel found her, she was unresponsive and her temperature had soared to 104 °F.

LaCombe survived (though full recovery took over a month), but the outcome could have been very different had Erik not been there to call for help. Looking back on that incident and the life she and Erik have shared over the past three years, LaCombe says simply: “He has awed me to tears.”

If you or a family member think you may qualify for canine assistance, you can apply at Canine Companions for Independence’s website, cci.org. There you’ll also find information about making donations or volunteering to raise puppies for the program.

Applicants for the program must be United States Armed Forces veterans with a PTSD diagnosis and live anywhere within the state of Texas, or other select regions throughout the country. The process to receive a Canine Companions assistance dog involves multiple steps. Veterans are invited to review the application information on cci.org and contact Canine Companions for Independence if they are interested in applying.

Service dog program expands to help veterans with PTSD

Vintners Resort: Celebrating its 35th Anniversary with a New Name and a Community Fête

What began as a 44-room inn on 40 acres of vineyards in the Russian River Valley has evolved into what will now be officially known as Vintners Resort: a full-service hospitality experience surrounded by 92 acres of vineyards, complete with a 78-room hotel featuring a courtyard and vineyard view rooms, a full-service event center, multiple wedding venues, the award-winning John Ash & Co. Restaurant, River Vine Restaurant, John Ash & Co. Catering, The Front Room Bar & Lounge and the state-of-the-art Vi La Vita Spa.

Vintners Resort General Manager Percy Brandon invites his Sonoma County neighbors to join him in celebrating a ribbon-cutting reception on February 18, 2020 at 4:30 p.m. in partnership with the Santa Rosa Chamber to reveal the new marquee, followed by a wine and appetizer reception at 5 p.m.

Local media are invited to attend the event and can RSVP by emailing marcella@mccuepr.com.

The name ushers in a few more changes for the resort, including the appointment of a concierge to elevate the guest experience. Christopher Carrillo, who was previously the maître d at John Ash & Co. restaurant, will design custom itineraries for guests, assist with dining recommendations and reservations, spa appointments, transportation, floral arrangements, gift baskets, concert and special events tickets, wine country excursions and experiences, and more. The resort also debuted a new vineyard table nestled between rows of their surrounding vineyards, which will serve as an event venue. Other new guest experiences include upgraded in-room complimentary snack and beverage and spa amenities.

Vi La Vita Spa opened its doors in fall 2018, complete with an indoor and outdoor plunge pools, five treatment rooms, steam saunas, a wellness relaxation lounge, a shopping boutique and a fitness center. Thirty-four additional vineyard view rooms and suites were also completed in late 2018, bringing the total number of rooms at Vintners Inn to 78

River Vine, which had its origin as a casual continental breakfast option, grew into a breakfast café that officially opened its doors in July of 2017. The restaurant is now a full-service dining experience offering breakfast, lunch and brunch seven days a week.

The 10,000 square-foot Vintners Inn Event Center opened in 2006, creating a purpose-built luxury event space. Today, the resort is a favorite for couples seeking a wine country wedding and a highly sought-after venue for other corporate and social events. The property includes 14 venues and meeting spaces that can accommodate up to 300 guests.

For media inquiries or to request high-resolution photos of Vintners Resort, please contact Marcella Thompkins at marcella@mccuepr.com.

About Vintners Resort

Vintners Resort is a full-service hospitality experience in Sonoma County. Encompassed by 92 acres of vineyards in the Russian River Valley appellation, The Hotel at Vintners Resort is a AAA, Four-Diamond 78-room boutique hotel that is California Green Certified. The property features award-winning, on-site dining, a luxury spa, health club, a conference and events center and an array of amenities from Bocce ball to a vineyard trail. The resort is an ideal location for a romantic getaway, wellness retreat, business trip or dream wine country wedding. Reminiscent of a European village replete with culinary gardens, sparkling fountains and vineyard views, this lush enclave offers a serene escape that is conveniently located in the best of wine country.

https://www.santarosametrochamber.com/blog/2020/02/06/member/introducing-vintners-resort-celebrating-its-35th-anniversary-with-a-new-name-and-a-community-f-te/

Star Staffing to Host Talent Summit: The Future of Work

About this Event

You’re only as great as the talent you hire. Getting the right talent with the right skills in the right positions requires strategy and innovation. Help your organization maintain a competitive advantage by gaining the tools and resources you need to enhance your talent and HR strategy.

2020 Speaker Lineup

Katrina Kibben, Three Ears Media – Personalization in the Age of Automation

We’re in the age of the machines. We are now using voice assistants, chatbots, recruiting machine learning technologies, and so much more in our daily lives. You’d think that all these things would make recruiting easier, right? Of course! However, out-of-the-box machine automation doesn’t make our lives easier. In fact, it speeds up a terrible experience that makes candidates feel ignored and unimportant. In this session, Katrina will teach you practical ways to make the most of simple automated interactions to create a candidate experience that is helpful, but most importantly, human.

You will learn:

  • How to utilize automation without losing the human touch
  • Strategies to stand out in the hiring process
  • How to create candidates who will become your best brand ambassadors
  • Tips to customize your message and reach the right audience

Alison Crawford, Uber – Diversity and Inclusion: Rethinking your Recruitment Strategy

Most HR Leaders know that a diverse team brings more creativity, innovation, and ultimately, more results. It makes sense that different perspectives and backgrounds on a team contribute to newer and more diverse ideas to solve challenges and propel innovation. But, the topic of diversity and inclusion goes beyond just business results and performance… and, it doesn’t happen on its own. It is important for companies to actively seek and recruit candidates from a variety of backgrounds to ensure they’re not inadvertently creating an identical workforce.

Alison will help you connect the dots to bridge the gap between a diverse workforce and one that is all-inclusive. You will gain strategies and insights needed to reduce bias, shift exclusive workplace habits, and transform workplace culture to create a better, more productive workplace environment.

You will learn:

  • Strategies to attract a diverse workforce
  • How to develop Employee Resource Groups that support the 4Cs of all types of organizations [culture, careers, commerce, and community]
  • Benefits of blind screenings and implementation of the Rooney Rule

Heather Bussing, Employment Lawyer & Analyst at HR Examiner – How to Effectively Use Your HR Data

The quality of your data matters more than ever…. so, make it count! The subject is inescapable and is changing the operations of almost every industry — from hospitality, to healthcare, and even to HR. Continuing advances in HR technology mean that HR data analytics are only going to get more useful, sophisticated, and universal.

All technology solutions, even Artificial Intelligence (AI), are created by humans. Thus, AI has the potential to be influenced and impacted by human biases. Solutions designed to produce bias-free outcomes in HR processes like hiring or compensation need to continuously be evaluated to ensure that these outcomes are, in fact, being attained. Heather Bussing, Employment Attorney, works in the thick of risk management focusing on biases around the use of HR technology. She will explore the issues associated with technology and the way it can either perpetuate or help reduce bias.

You will learn:

  • What data to track and why
  • How to use data to improve engagement and retention
  • How data can uncover compliance issues such as bias and sexual harassment
  • How to talk with C-Suite about bias and technology
  • What to do when technology that is supposed to eliminate bias actually makes it worse

KEYNOTE

Margaret Graziano, KeenAlignment – Elevate the Effectiveness of Your HR Team

The 21st Century workforce presents a unique set of challenges to HR managers and leaders. You’re called upon to lead multiple generations of people with diverse backgrounds, values, work ethics, and perspectives when it comes to how they do their job. Statistically, over 70% of your workforce may be burned out, disengaged, and doubtful of their own ability to contribute in a way that matters.

As a leader in HR, you need to be able to address these challenges, remove obstacles, and initiate changes that improve the employee experience, increase engagement, and optimize your workforce. At the same time, you need to convince executives that your initiatives have the power to not only increase employee engagement but to increase customer satisfaction and net profits as well.

You will learn:

  • How to create a crystalized vision of an empowered career in strategic HR
  • Strategies: to identify and remove obstacles within your organization; and, to introduce initiatives that increase employee productivity and profit
  • How to develop communication skills that will gain buy-in, inspire people to take positive action, and make the Executives pay attention
  • Steps to determine which priorities will give you the greatest return on your investment of time and energy
  • The difference between culture and climate — and how each impacts the employee experience and your authority as a leader

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/talent-summit-the-future-of-work-tickets-76967492843?aff=SG

Novato-Inspired New State College Fellowship Program Rewards Public Service

Dominican University and seven other California universities are joining with the state of California to create a fellowship program that will provide scholarships and stipends to students in return for public service.

Novato civic project inspires college scholarship program

Keysight Technologies Plans To Build On-Site Child Care For Workers

Santa Rosa-based Keysight Technologies Inc. will soon break ground on a new on-site child care center for its employees and the public at its Fountaingrove campus, the company announced Wednesday.

The facility is scheduled to open in August and is expected to add 100 child care slots to the area. Company officials said the facility will play a role in the electronics test and measurement firm’s employee retention and recruitment plans.

Those plans call for the site to offer early education and care for infants, preschool and children up to age 12 from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. It will be overseen by the employer-sponsored child care firm Bright Horizons, based in Massachusetts. Keysight will provide space and finance the remodeling and furnishings at the facility.

“Keysight fully understands that offering on-site child care is important to attracting and retaining the best talent in the North Bay and surrounding areas,” Hamish Gray, Keysight senior vice president, stated in the announcement. “Ron Nersesian, chairman, president and CEO of Keysight was a driving force behind this investment decision, which is reflective of the company’s commitment to our employees and to all of Sonoma County.”

Santa Rosa Metro Chamber has been working with the city of Santa Rosa, major employers and community partners to increase access to quality child care and education in the county, according to the announcement.

“High quality, affordable and accessible child care has a significant impact on the economic growth and competitiveness of companies in our region, and is vital in supporting working families,” said Ananda Sweet, vice president of public policy and workforce development with the chamber.

On average, half of working parents miss over eight days of work due to child care issues, and 80% of parents would leave one job for another that provides child care, based on a Care.com report Sweet cited. Businesses typically see up to and beyond a 100% return on investment from tax savings, increased retention and productivity, and decreased absenteeism, according to FastCompany.com.

Sweet said every $1 invested in high-quality early childhood education programs can lead to $16 back in the pockets of community members from higher wages later in life, increased tax revenue, more efficient public schools, improved personal and public health, less crime, and more educated skilled workers, according to a study from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation.

The chamber conducted research for almost two years, funded by the First 5 Commission of Sonoma County, involving interviews with companies across the country that have on-site child care, collecting provider information and assessing a range of models and processes as well as the return on investment in child care.

There are no employer supported child care centers in the region that the Metro Chamber could identify. However, the 4C’s of Sonoma County found that there were 166 day care centers, 114 license-exempt centers, and 327 licensed family child care providers in its 2019 survey.

As of December 20, 2019, some 1,326 children were on a wait list. Since 2012, the number of child care homes in the county has declined by 21% representing a loss of 295 providers.

The city of Santa Rosa has eliminated or reduced fees, and reduced review authority, to encourage child care facility operations. Planning application fees are refunding the applicant following evidence that the facility has been opened and complies with requirements for project approval. Most child care facilities and family home day care operations are permitted.

https://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/northbay/sonomacounty/10675946-181/keysight-employment-child-care?taid=5e3b82450f91f60001a27439