Commissioners honor Office of Children and Youth

NORRISTOWN » The Montgomery County Commissioners honored professionals in children and youth services, received an update on the Commerce Department and learned the results of the county’s “Easiest Scholarship Ever” contest at their regularly scheduled meeting June 7.

Children and youth services proclamation

In recognition of Child Welfare Professionals Week, Office of Children and Youth Department Head Laurie O’Connor, OCY staff, provider network partners, and members of the department’s citizens advisory committee were commended for their caring and diligent work assisting 20,676 families last year.

O’Connor thanked the commissioners for their “support in helping (OCY) to devise innovative solutions to difficult social issues.”

“Your support makes sure that we’re able to respond quickly and effectively, 24/7, 365 to make sure that family’s across Montgomery County are receiving the support they need,” O’Connor said.

Commerce Department update

The commissioners were updated on the progress of the county’s commerce department by Commerce Director David Zellers.

Zellers, who was hired last summer, outlined a recent overhaul of the department’s website and unveiled the hashtag #MontcoForward, a catchall for everything that makes “Montgomery County the place to live, work, learn and invest.”

In a virtual tour of the revamped website, Zellers highlighted the Meet Montgomery County Story Map, which utilizes geospatial data analysis to provide clickable graphic representations of county offerings such as business and retail locations, infrastructure, connectivity, investment centers, transportation hubs, higher education campuses, historical and recreational sites and entertainment venues.

To ensure the site is as comprehensive and inclusive as possible, Zellers said he and his team worked closely with the county’s planning commission.

Commissioner Val Arkoosh thanked Zellers for his presentation and hailed the website as a “one stop shop” for anyone who has questions about Montgomery County.

Easiest Scholarship Ever

The Easiest Scholarship Ever is a contest, run by the Montgomery County Department of Public safety in conjunction with PulsePoint, to raise awareness and improve sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) survival rates by creating a countywide registry of automated external defibrillators (AEDs).

All county student over 16 were eligible for entry. And all they had to do was snap and upload the most photos of AEDs for the registry each month between November and March to receive the monthly prize of a $250 scholarship.

There are approximately 500 out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrests in Montgomery County each year, according to John Corcoran, the deputy director of external relations for the county’s public safety department, and only 10 percent survive and recover.

Bystander CPR and/or the use of an AED can double or even triple those survival rates, Corcoran said.

PulsePoint is an app that sends out an alert to individuals trained in CPR within a quarter mile of a reported SCA occurrence. It also shows the location of the nearest registered AED. The Easiest Scholarship Ever is a contest that works to add to the AED registry, educate the public about SAC and provide funds for prospective college students, simultaneously.

Commissioners notebook

The commissioners approved a request to award a $298,000 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania cooperative purchasing (COSTARS) contract for the purchase and installation of furniture from EFS LLC of Norristown for relocated offices in the Health and Human Services Department.

The commissioners also authorized a Court Administration Department payment of $69,400 to Doubletree Suites in Plymouth Meeting for lodging and meal costs for sequestered jurors during the Bill Cosby sex assault trial held in April at the Montgomery County Courthouse.

Another Cosby related payment of $24,100 was approved for audio equipment used in courtrooms during the trial.