Ontario Public Servants Honoured

McGuinty Government Applauds Employee Excellence

TORONTO, June 19 –

NEWS

Innovative public servants are being honoured today for their hard work and dedication to the people of Ontario.

The Amethyst Awards pay tribute to Ontario public servants who have set a standard of excellence in their daily work. Secretary of Cabinet Shelly Jamieson and Education Minister Kathleen Wynne were on hand for the presentation of 24 awards to groups and individuals across the Ontario Public Service (OPS), including this year’s recipient of the Sandra D. Lang Lifetime Achievement Award. <>

QUOTES:

“I am continually impressed by the dedication and innovation of Ontario’s public servants who are committed to improving the quality of life for Ontarians,” said Premier McGuinty. “We commend each of this year’s Amethyst Award recipients for the hard work that has contributed to so many positive outcomes across the province.”

“Leadership, teamwork, creativity and a vision for transformation are attributes of this year’s Amethyst recipients who strive daily to make this province one of the best places in the world to live, work and raise a family,” said Shelly Jamieson. “I congratulate each of these individuals and groups who have looked beyond the organization to see the big picture for the benefit of all. I am proud to join the Premier, Minister Wynne and my OPS colleagues in celebrating their achievements.”

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LEARN MORE

The Amethyst Awards are the Ontario government’s most prestigious recognition program for outstanding work by employees, nominated by their peers.

The Honours and Awards Secretariat
(http://www.citizenship.gov.on.ca/english/honours/) at the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration delivers Ontario honours and awards programs which celebrate the accomplishments of those who make Ontario a great place to live.

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The Amethyst Awards program was created in 1992, to recognize excellence in the Ontario Public Service (OPS). Administered by the Ontario Honours and Awards Secretariat, Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration, any individual, group or partnership in the OPS is eligible for nomination. Recipients are selected based on exceptional work in the areas of client service, innovation, leadership, professional achievement and working horizontally across government. The Sandra D. Lang Lifetime Achievement Award honours the late Deputy Minister Sandra Lang and is awarded to individuals whose career achievements have set an extraordinary example of excellence and service for other Ontario public servants.

INDIVIDUALS
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George Chin
Ministry of the Attorney General

In addition to his position as the Manager of Business Planning in the Ministry of the Attorney General, George Chin is the Chair of the Ottawa Interministerial Council (OIC), part of the Eastern and Provincial Interministerial networks. George is an exceptional leader and a collaborative innovator. His work has greatly benefited the ministry, OPS staff in the Ottawa area, and serves as a model for other regions and ministries.

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Angela Coke
Ministry of Government and Consumer Services

An embodiment of leadership, she’s a recognized trendsetter “setting the bar” and “walking the talk”. Angela inspires staff by demonstrating and supporting the Division’s values of Integrity; High Performance; Teamwork; Creativity; and, Work-Life Balance. Despite high demands on her time – she always makes herself available and accessible to all staff.

In 2005 she also led the development of the OPS Youth and Young Professionals Strategy for the Centre for Leadership and Human Resource Management. Angela lives the words and sets an example that others may emulate.

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Loretta Eley
Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services

Over the past thirty years, Ms. Loretta Eley has excelled in the many aspects of her distinguished career in corrections. She has demonstrated outstanding leadership and vision towards innovative and humanitarian approaches in the multifaceted corrections field. As one of the first women to hold high-level positions, she has significantly contributed to transform the OPS to be an inclusive environment. Her long-standing resolve has made “a positive impact on the lives of people in conflict with the law.”

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Trevor Fairchild
Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services

In 2004, the workload generated by child pornography investigations was threatening to overwhelm both the OPP Electronic Crime Section and Child Pornography Section. Mr. Fairchild, then the administrative assistant for e-Crime, volunteered to help. Without any experience in computer programming or digital forensics he nonetheless created a software package that is now in use by hundreds of Law Enforcement and Security agencies within Canada and internationally.

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Dr. Leon Genesove
Ministry of Labour

Dr. Leon Genesove exemplifies the Ontario Public Service Values of trust, fairness, excellence, collaboration, responsiveness, efficiency and diversity in the daily execution of his responsibilities as an innovative leader. He started his career with the provincial government twenty-three years ago, and has been promoted through positions of increasing responsibility and spheres of influence during that time. Currently he wears two hats: that of Provincial Physician (since 1997) and Team Lead, Healthcare (since 2007).

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John Goch
Ministry of Children and Youth Services

For John Goch, the vision of finding ways to support communities in healing and addressing youth justice issues is not the result of some recent epiphany; it is the product of more than thirty years of experience helping Aboriginal communities to address challenges related to families and youth. His achievement is ongoing as Youth Justice in the North continues to support the identification of need, the development of programs and the implementation of these services in places where they have not been previously offered.

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Stuart J. McKeen
Ministry of Research and Innovation

Due to the vision and foresight of Stuart McKeen in challenging two of Ontario’s best and brightest biotechnology scientists to “think big and take on the world”, the Province of Ontario has achieved world leadership positions in two prestigious international research initiatives that are now leveraging millions of dollars from Federal and international research granting agencies to the benefit of Ontario. These initiatives are creating hundreds of jobs for skilled Ontario graduates and skilled immigrants, bringing top international scientists to work in Ontario, providing new opportunities for the creation of spin-off companies and bringing acclaim to Ontario and its biotechnology research community.

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David Poirier
Ministry of the Environment

David Poirier is the leader, chief scientific innovator, and technical spokesman for MOE’s reference facility for aquatic toxicity testing – acknowledged to be one of the best in Canada. Working with a group of dedicated scientists and technologists who comprise the Aquatic Toxicology Unit (ATU), Dave has developed methods used Canada-wide, trained a significant number of young professionals who are taking similar positions in public and private laboratories, and has received a 94% approval rating from customers of his laboratory in a 2005 survey.

Dave’s efforts over 20 years have had a profound effect on reducing industrial pollution in Ontario. The University of Guelph has recently recognized his achievements by appointing him to their Special Graduate Faculty.

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Jeffrey Simser
Ministry of the Attorney General

In developing and implementing the Civil Remedies Act, 2001 and leading the Civil Remedies for Illicit Activities Office (“CRIA”), Jeffrey Simser has demonstrated innovative excellence, skilled leadership and an ability to effectively work horizontally.

The Act is the first of its kind in Canada and permits a civil court to freeze and forfeit property acquired through, or likely to be used for, unlawful activity. The legislation has enabled the Ministry of the Attorney General to use these forfeited funds to compensate victims and provide grants to prevent victimization.

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John Stager
Ministry of Labour

John Stager has championed the modernization of the Ontario government’s regulatory compliance community, working horizontally across 13 regulatory ministries, other partner ministries, agencies and with business stakeholders. John’s leadership has resulted in strong and connected inspections, investigations and enforcement (II&E) community and recognition of Ontario by numerous jurisdictions as a leader in regulatory compliance approaches.

John’s leadership has been instrumental in building the II&E community, enabling Ontario regulators to work together more effectively while also assisting the regulated community to comply. These initiatives have improved the effectiveness of government resources and, most importantly, have improved overall public protection.

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GROUPS
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BizPaL Project Team
Ministry of Government and Consumer Services

BizPaL is an innovative web-based service allowing entrepreneurs to easily generate a customized list of the business permits and licences they require from all levels of government – federal, provincial, regional and municipal. The service saves entrepreneurs time and reduces the administrative burden in their interaction with government.

The BizPaL project team realized that a new partnership model was required for success. The result is sustainable cooperation across all jurisdictions and the delivery of one-stop permit and licence information without infringing on local responsibility or accountability.

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Cancer Screening Framework Policy Team
Ministry of Health & Long-Term Care

In 2007, Ontario announced a new program to screen for colorectal cancer. At the time of its announcement, Ontario’s Colorectal Cancer Screening Program was the first of its kind in North America; the first comprehensive colorectal cancer screening program offered across an entire jurisdiction to its citizens.

The Colorectal Cancer Screening Framework Policy Team developed a unique Ontario-based approach to delivering comprehensive colorectal cancer screening. The initiative cuts across leadership, client service, innovation, professional achievement and horizontal policy work.

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Corporate Talent Management Team
Ministry of Government and Consumer Services

Talent Management (TM) is working to transform the Ontario Public Service (OPS). The recognized workforce challenges related to retirements and skill shortages are the burning platform upon which an entirely new and innovative approach to managing talent was built. Through extensive consultation with best practice organizations and stakeholders, Talent Management was designed to meet the unique needs of the organization and it continues to improve and evolve.

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FLEX
Office of Francophone Affairs

The Office of Francophone Affairs (OFA) Policy Research and Services Branch Director Eric Mézin and Senior Policy Analyst Geneviève Brouyaux took the lead in developing and delivering an innovative, strategic and transformative professional development program for OPS bilingual staff: FLEX (French-language Excellence).

FLEX was realized with the collaboration and support of Kerry Pond and Lynda Shepard from the Centre for Leadership and Learning (CFLL). The program, delivered in French, was designed to address a wide range of needs and issues among bilingual staff.

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Healthcare Health and Safety Multi-Disciplinary Team
Ministry of Labour and Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care

This collaborative multi-branch team improved Ontario’s healthcare workers’ health and safety.

The SARS Commission’s final report addressed the devastating impact of SARS on healthcare workers. Various Ministry of Labour (MOL) branches responded collectively by forging a partnership involving joint planning, problem solving and decision-making with the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (MOHLTC). The majority of the report’s 84 recommendations were addressed through 60 initiatives. This level of responsiveness and efficiency is based on the power of the partnership.

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Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccination Program Cabinet Submission Team
Ministry of Health & Long-Term Care

A small and feisty inter-branch team metaphorically leapt tall buildings to ensure the development of the HPV Vaccination Program, addressing all the government’s issues and concerns within extremely tight timelines. Results were the key focus and accomplishments achieved clearly demonstrate excellence for both OPS policy and public health.

The team’s keen client focus successfully enabled the government to announce a significant public health initiative for the prevention of cancer in a very timely manner.

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Island Park Project Team
Ministry of Transportation

For the first time in Canada, an entire bridge on a provincial freeway was replaced in under 24 hours. On August 11 2007, the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) along with its contractors made history by using an innovative rapid replacement technology to lift, remove, and replace the Island Park Bridge on the Ottawa Queensway while crowds gathered to witness first-hand history in the making. The MTO team brought an innovative construction method to a high profile location where complete success was the only option acceptable.

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Lake Superior National Marine Conservation Area (NMCA) Team
Ministry of Natural Resources

On October 25, 2007, Canada’s newest National Marine Conservation Area (NMCA) in Lake Superior was created. Throughout the process, Ontario’s NMCA team provided outstanding leadership on behalf of Ontarians to ensure that their interests are taken into account, the lake’s marine heritage is adequately protected, and its resource base will be soundly and effectively managed.

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MOE Electricity Team
Ministry of the Environment

The government made strong commitments to develop an energy strategy that would support its efforts on climate change. Central to this strategy was an increase in Ontario’s supply of clean and renewable energy.

The Ministry of the Environment established a dedicated Electricity Team. The team found innovative ways to streamline the environmental approval process and reduce turnaround time by as much as 50 per cent without compromising environmental protection. As a result, over 70 electricity projects and more than 1,600 megawatts of new clean and renewable energy capacity have been assisted through the approvals process in record time.

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New Ontario First Nations Partnership on Gaming Revenues
Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs

Through the efforts of both teams, Ontario was able to reach agreement with the Ontario First Nations Limited Partnership for a long term, multi-billion dollar historic revenue sharing agreement with 133 First Nations. The monies available to these First Nations will allow for improvement in health and education in communities, and will allow these communities to grow and enjoy an improved quality of life. The agreement is an important first step in the new relationship between First Nations and Ontario.

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Niagara River Toxics Management Plan
Ministry of the Environment

Thirty years after Love Canal the environmental conditions along the Niagara River are no longer front page news.

This nomination recognizes twenty years of cross-governmental co-operation between two countries and four governments. Since 1987 Ontario Ministry of the Environment scientists and water resource managers have collaborated with partners to address toxic contaminants in an area that was once among the most severely degraded in North America. In doing so they have established a model for efficient inter-jurisdictional environmental management.

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Office of the Registrar General, Premium Online Service Project Team
Thunder Bay
Ministry of Government and Consumer Services

In 2006, the Office of the Registrar General (ORG) was committed to expanding its access to emergency service for birth, marriage and death certificates from one Toronto public counter to an online application available to all Ontario citizens with a money-back service guarantee. By July 2007, the ORG launched Premium Online Service for birth, death and marriage certificates, backed by a 5 business day Service Guarantee.

Word of this initiative reverberated throughout the public and the public sector internationally. It took overwhelming dedication and tenacity to deliver this project and achieve an astounding 99.75% success rate.

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Tomorrow’s OPS (TOPS) Leadership Representatives
Ministry of Government and Consumer Services

TOPS executives have shown leadership through their efforts to establish and build TOPS, and to develop its members as leaders. To create opportunities for leadership, TOPS encourages members to lead projects that equip young and new OPS professionals with the skills they’ll need to take on leadership roles.

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Ken Knox
Former Deputy Minister, Retired from the OPS

Ken Knox has always been focused on the future. His ideas like the MaRS Centre have made Ontario one of North America’s leading jurisdictions in innovation. Ken Knox started in the Ontario Public Service in the field offices of the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food. As Deputy Minister for the Ministry of Energy, Science and Technology, Ken Knox always showed his greatest skill: the vision to create new, innovative programs that benefit all Ontarians.

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For further information: Maria, D’Addona, Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration, (416) 314-7529; Christine Edwardson, Ministry of Health Promotion, (416) 326-4956