The County is currently in the process of developing the measurement framework for the King County Strategic Plan and is working to develop community-wide indicators for the determinants of equity(*) and working to link the County’s objectives, strategies and programs to those determinants. The County will have more influence over some determinants, such as the public transit component of the transportation determinant, than others, such as education, where the County’s direct role is quite limited. While we will develop goals for the County’s strategies that influence determinants, we are not establishing numeric goals for the community-wide determinants, as the determinants describe community conditions where many sectors play a role. That said, we hope to increase focus in the County’s work on influencing these determinants and aspire to improve fairness and opportunity for all.

(*)”Determinants of equity” are the social, economic, geographic, political and physical environment conditions in which people in our county are born, grow, live, work and age that lead to the creation of a fair and just society. Access to the determinants of equity is necessary to have equity for all people regardless of race, class, gender or language spoken. Inequities are created when barriers exist that prevent individuals and communities from accessing these conditions and reaching their full potential.

I have been volunteering and working at the Juvenile Court Building Complex since 1981. As a student interning at Department of Youth Services, about 1989, I had an assignment to watch a decision making meeting. The KC Council was listening to the Presiding Judge, who was requesting funds to install metal detectors and security at the Courthouse. The Council declined to include that item in the budget. Months later a murder occurred in the halls of family court. Currently, I doubt that there is anyone who thinks that we should cut the budget by taking out metal detectors and security, but not enough people saw the benefit of it in 1989.

Since I have begun working as a Juvenile Probation Counselor, I have always introduced myself and my goal to youthful offenders as helping them to find options out of our system, so that they can be productive, responsible citizens. Many of the programs that have been developed and used here in King County, have done that. Recidivism (the return to crime) is down when youth engage and complete our programs. Juvenile crime rates had gone down. Just as most people would not take out the metal detectors and security from our court buildings, most people, if they really understood our work with youthful offenders and their families, would not say to cut our programs that help the community by helping the kids make better choices.

Thanks for “listening.”