Top County Stories in 2023

Last year was a busy one —from Tropical Cyclone Hilary bringing lots of rain to a new County supervisor being sworn into office. Here’s a glimpse of the top-viewed topics and stories from InSite over the past year.

County Names Interim HHSA Director

In June 2023, County Chief Medical Officer Dr. Eric McDonald was named to serve as interim Health and Human Services Agency director by Chief Administrative Officer Helen Robbins-Meyer.

Dr. McDonald continues to hold the position as the County hears from the community about the qualities and qualifications, they would like in the next leader of HHSA. The agency oversees numerous programs and has nearly 8,000 employees who directly provide services to more than a third of the region’s residents.

County Gets a New Brand

The County adopted a new logo on July 1, 2023. It reflects the region’s geographic diversity, the County’s new energy and takes inspiration from the County seal and the Live Well San Diego brand.

The logo is meant to complement our County seal which has been in use since 1937. The seal will continue to be used for formal official documents like Board of Supervisors policies, County proclamations and others.

Find all the logo information you need to roll through 2024 on-brand and in style.

Picture Lovers

Employees loved showing off their personalities in 2023. More than 555 photos were submitted to a gallery filled with employees’ cute pets. More than 250 photos were shared in the virtual costume party and costume contest on Halloween! And a jolly amount of pictures were shared in a gallery showcasing “ugly” holiday attire.

Jay’s Program

In March 2023, the County hosted a graduation ceremony with five interns from an inclusive employment internship called Jay’s Program. Watch a short video from this celebration.

Jay’s Program helps those with intellectual and developmental disabilities improve their job skills and increase opportunities for future employment while allowing participating County departments to expand their perspective on inclusivity and belonging in the workplace. 

Buildings on the Horizon

In February 2023, General Services shared an update on ribbon cuttings, groundbreakings and capital expansion projects for both 2022 and the upcoming year of 2023. Projects included the Lakeside Library, the Southeastern Live Well Center and the East Otay Mesa Fire Station 38.

Recognizing Our Long-time Employees

Each month we recognize long-time employees of the County in Service Awards. The list honors employees who have been with the County for 20, 25, 30 years and more!

In addition, we celebrate those who have retired after serving the public through the retirement post.

Positive Experience

County employees are committed to providing our customers with a positive experience. Quotes from customer satisfaction surveys, online reviews and social media comments are highlighted each week on InSite. And employees LOVE to read them. The “Positive Experience” quotes are some of the most read content on InSite. If you want to share your own Positive Experience, email communications@sdcounty.ca.gov or share Praise on Teams.

InService

We met 50 incredible employees through the InService this year. The video series, which features a different employee each week, is a celebration of everyone who makes the County work. Check out all the videos. We look forward to celebrating more of you in 2024!

Read more popular stories from 2023: Top Stories from the San Diego County News Center in 2023