EMPLOYEE NEWS

November 13, 2023

Director McElroy discusses the Healthy Aging program in this YouTube video.

ODA launches the statewide Healthy Aging program

Last week, Governor Mike DeWine and Director McElroy officially announced the launch of ODA's new Healthy Aging Grants program.

Healthy Aging will distribute $40 million across every corner of Ohio for services including food assistance, housing, internet access, nutrition and physical activity, health insurance enrollment, minor home repairs, caregiver support, and much more.

Healthy Aging Grants were among ODA’s top priorities throughout the budget process earlier this year. With the support of Governor Mike DeWine and a coalition of business and community leaders across Ohio, Healthy Aging was included within the final version of the state operating budget passed by the 135th General Assembly.

The creation of the program is the result of a tremendous amount of hard work from multiple teams in the department. We are very excited about the launch of this program, but even more excited to watch it grow and thrive. For more information, visit the Healthy Aging page on the ODA website.

Information on Winter Weather

Information via Ohio Department of Administrative Services (DAS)

Only the Director of the Department of Public Safety can declare a “Public Safety Emergency” pursuant to State of Ohio Administrative Policy, Public Safety Emergency HR-11, that will close state offices or limit an employee’s need to travel for work purposes. Without such a declaration by the Director of the Department of Public Safety, all State of Ohio offices and operations are to operate under normal working hours. A determination made by a county (or other local government) that the county is under a snow emergency (Level 3 or otherwise) does not close state offices.

As always, whenever road conditions are less than ideal, state employees are asked to exercise caution when traveling to or from work. Even if no weather emergency has been declared, if conditions are such that agencies or employees believe employees are unable to get to work safely, agencies are encouraged to be reasonable and use discretion in (1) permitting telework if employees are otherwise permitted to do so under a policy and/or teleworking agreement, or (2) approving leave requests (including vacation, personal, and compensatory time). 

Additionally, should an event occur (power outage, etc.) that may impede employees’ ability to report to a particular work location, agencies should consider teleworking, for agencies with teleworking policies and agreements in place. If one or more of your agency’s office locations are no longer operational, please contact your assigned policy analyst in the DAS Labor Relations and Human Resources Section for further information before taking any action (e.g., sending employees home).

December Town Hall and Holiday Party!

ODA's December Town Hall and 2023 Staff Holiday Party will take place on Thursday, December 14, at the Grange Insurance Audubon Center in Columbus. Located at 505 W. Whittier St, the party is less than a 10-minute drive from Rhodes Tower. The event will run from 12:30-3 p.m.

Staff should be sure to arrive hungry, and please bring your cell phones to participate in activities. Parking is free at the Audubon Center, and shuttle service will be available for staff who are not driving to the party. Carpooling is encouraged, as the Audubon Center is a public park with 96 spaces.

More information about the Holiday Party will be coming soon.

Director McElroy speaks at OSILC 30th Anniversary Celebration

On October 25, Director McElroy provided remarks at the Ohio Statewide Independent Living Council (OSILC)’s 30th Anniversary Celebration at the Ohio Statehouse Atrium – offering her congratulations for three decades of promoting the empowerment of Ohioans of all ages and abilities.

Director took time to discuss the intersection of OSILC and ODA’s work and emphasized the importance of working collaboratively moving forward to ensure that older Ohioans remain a prominent part of the conversation when it comes to the promotion of independent living.

Director McElroy receives award from Community Solutions

On October 20, Director McElroy was honored when she received the 2023 Award for Outstanding Public Service in Honor of John A. Begala from The Center for Community Solutions. The award was given out as part of their Celebration of Human Services event.

The award honors public servants who have demonstrated a strong commitment to improving health and human services in Ohio. Director McElroy was chosen for leading ODA's efforts to expand the PACE program and for getting the Healthy Aging Grant program through the budget process.

Congratulations, Director!

Ohioans walk more than 58 million steps in support of ODA falls prevention campaign

During National Falls Prevention Awareness Month in September, ODA ran its annual "10 Million Steps" campaign, with Ohioans contributing 58,372,500 steps in support of raising awareness of falls among older adults. That total is ODA's highest since before the pandemic, smashing the goal of 10 million steps.

Just how far could you get with 58 million steps?

• You could walk around the perimeter of Ohio nearly 21 times!
• You could take 46 round-trip drives between downtown Cleveland and downtown Cincinnati!
• You could take three round-trip flights between Columbus and London!

Thank you to everyone at ODA who took part in our September walking event or who watched a webinar in support of this year's 10 Million Steps campaign. You made this possible! Our staff outing was one of 41 walking groups in the state this year with 10,394 participants!

What's New?

Cultivating Gratitude in the Workplace

Learn how to cultivate a meaningful sense of gratitude in this new, interactive workshop. You’ll walk away with the ability to: describe gratitude and its benefits, practice expressing gratitude at work, and avoid common gratitude traps like forced gratitude.



Taking this training will be one way for employees to fulfill the “teamwork-related” training requirement laid out in the FY24 Annual Training plan.

• Virtual – Tuesday, November 28, 9-11:30 a.m.
• In-Person – Wednesday, November 29, 1-3:30 p.m.

Register in Ohio Learn or contact Matthew Dyer for assistance.

Taking and Tracking Training at ODA: Nov. 27, 10-11 a.m.

Do you have questions about the training plan requirements? Do you know how to use your ODA professional development funds? Are you tracking the training you’ve taken in the right place?

I’d be happy to help clarify confusions at one of your upcoming team meetings – just have your division chief contact me to set up the time.

Alternatively, join Matthew Dyer, Training Manger, on Teams for an optional training plan overview meeting on November 27 from 10-11 a.m. We’ll take a look at the training plan and its requirements, how to make sure you’re getting credit for the training you’re taking, and how to use the professional development funds you have available to you at ODA. Click here to join the meeting. (An Outlook calendar invitation will also be sent.)

If you're requesting an ADA accommodation to participate in this meeting, please submit your request at least two weeks in advance. You should submit your request for an ADA reasonable accommodation to:

Helena Carter, Human Capital Management Manager

Human Resources Division

614-728-5086

hcarter@age.ohio.gov

Training Opportunity: Communicating with Deaf and Hard of Hearing Employees: Nov. 16, 9:30-11 a.m.

On November 16 from 9:30-11 a.m., Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD) will present the workshop "Communicating with Deaf and Hard of Hearing Employees." The training is being held in-person on the 21st floor of the Rhodes Tower (virtual attendance is not enabled for this session).

This workshop is stimulating, interactive, and fun! You'll be able to:

• Have the opportunity to “hear” the way a person with sensorineural hearing loss hears
• Try your hand at speech reading
• Examine how written communication can both support and deteriorate the message
• Communicate everyday concepts using gesture

Register in Ohio Learn to attend: Training Catalog > ODA Catalog > ODA Training by Topic > General Employee Development > click class name > click Enroll (top right).

If you're requesting an ADA accommodation to participate in this meeting, please submit your request at least two weeks in advance. You should submit your request for an ADA reasonable accommodation to:



Helena Carter, Human Capital Management Manager

Human Resources Division

614-728-5086

hcarter@age.ohio.gov

ICYMI in AGE Training

To stay up to date, make sure you’re receiving notifications from the AGE Training team in Microsoft Teams. This past month’s posts included:

• An “un-meeting” overview and resource page (managers only)
• An “un-meeting” recap (managers only)
• Tips and knowledge shared in the “Today I Learned” channel
• Links to division meet and greet presentations shared in the “New Hire Hub” channel
• Resources to help you make your documents and presentations more accessible to individuals with disabilities in the “Tech Tips” channel
• And more!

Fine-tune your channel notification settings by using this guide.

What's Up?

Thank You to Our ODA Veterans!

From left to right: Ronald Beach (Army), Art Corell (Army), Matt Lampke (Army), Mark Radan (Marines), and William Seward (Marines).

This Veterans Day, we thank these ODA staff members and all veterans for their service to our great country.

November is Native American Heritage Month

This year’s theme: "Tribal Nations Soaring to New Heights." Click here to view the presentation brought to you by Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute (DEOMI).

What is Native American Heritage Month?

Native American Heritage Month is dedicated to recognizing the rich history, culture, and contributions of the Native American population. This commemorative month seeks to highlight the various and diverse tribes of Native peoples who lived in America long before explorers, colonists, and settlers arrived and claimed the land as their own. Before Columbus “discovered” America, the area was already inhabited by Indigenous people.

For this reason, Native American Heritage Month is also an opportunity to raise awareness of the plight of the Indigenous population and the obstacles they have faced historically and still face in the present day. This is an inspiring month that allows for education and enables all Americans to understand the history of their nation more.

What are the origins of Native American Heritage Month?

It is believed that Indigenous communities have lived in North America for around 12,000 years. In 1976, the Osage-Cherokee Native American Jerry C. Elliott (who was a physicist and one of the first Native Americans who worked at NASA) authored the Congressional legislation for the creation of a Native American Awareness Week. This would be the first historic week of observance of its kind for the Native population in the U.S.



Following this achievement, President Ronald Reagan proclaimed November 23 to November 30 as “American Indian Week” in 1986.

Thanks to President George H. W. Bush, American Indian Week transformed into a monthlong celebration in 1990. Bush declared November as “National American Indian Heritage Month.” In his bill, the President asked “federal, state, and local governments, as well as groups, organizations, and the people of the United States to observe the month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.”

Three interesting facts about Native American history:

• At the 45th Academy Awards in 1973, a Native American civil rights activist named Sacheen Littlefeather represented the nominated actor Marlon Brando. Winning the award for “Best Actor” in The Godfather, Littlefeather declined the accolade upon his request, using the speech as a chance to highlight the injustices faced by Native peoples in America. She spoke of their mistreatment in the movie industry and at the siege of Wounded Knee. This was one of the most unexpected and memorable moments in Oscar history. The activist’s speech mainly received boos from the audience of movie stars, and she later received death threats.
• More than half of the states in the U.S. have names that come from Native languages, one of the most familiar groups being the Algonquian languages. Three examples of this are Oklahoma, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. 
• Native Americans are considered to be the first group to have created anesthetics and analgesics. Often deriving from natural products and ointments, such as plants and flowers, they established a revolutionary form of medicinal healing, long before European doctors had knowledge of such possibilities.

What About You?

Leave Conversion Ends at 4 p.m. on November 13

Leave conversion will close at 4 p.m. on November 13. Eligible employees who want to convert eligible sick, personal, and vacation leave time to cash, or convert personal leave to sick leave, can access the Leave Conversion application via myOhio.gov to make elections.

To convert leave time to cash (or personal leave to sick leave) during the above conversion period:

1. In myOhio.gov, under My Workspace, go to Self Service
2. Click on myPay
3. Select Leave Conversion Election

The Leave Conversion page will list the employee’s leave balances by leave type and will also display the number of hours that are eligible to be converted. To convert eligible leave hours, employees need to select/input the number of hours to be converted in the corresponding fields. The balances are subject to change based on any additional leave usage or accrual until the pay period that includes the payment for converted hours.

If the online elections are not submitted by the 4 p.m. deadline on November 13, eligible leave balances will be carried forward.

Leave conversion payments will be included in paychecks issued Friday, December 1.

November 29 Wellness Wednesday – Nutrition!

The start of the holiday season is quickly approaching, which of course can typically be accompanied by a lot of our favorite dishes and desserts. Come join the Wellness Wednesday group as one of our resident dieticians, Autumn Trombetta from our Elder Connections Division, will provide some good information on reading food labels and ingredients, and portion sizes.

Healthy Holiday Leftover Show and Tell!

Share with us your own healthy spin on one of your favorite holiday appetizers, dishes, sides or desserts and how you keep things healthy during the holidays and manage self-control!  

November is National Diabetes Month

November is a time when communities across the country seek to bring attention to diabetes. This year’s focus is on taking action to prevent diabetes health problems. 

Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high. It affects about 37 million Americans, including adults and youth. Diabetes can damage the eyes, kidneys, nerves, and heart, and it is linked to some types of cancer. Taking charge of your health may help you prevent diabetes health problems.

• Manage your blood glucose, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels: Research shows that managing your diabetes as soon as possible after diagnosis may help prevent diabetes health problems. You can start by managing your diabetes ABCs.
• A is for the A1C test that health care professionals use to measure your average blood glucose levels. Some people with diabetes also use devices to track their blood glucose throughout the day and night.
• B is for blood pressure.
• C is for cholesterol.
• Take small steps toward healthy habits: Lifestyle habits such as planning healthy meals, being physically active, getting enough sleep, and not smoking may help you manage your diabetes ABCs. You don’t have to do it all at once. Start slow and build healthier habits from there.
• Take your medicines on time: Remember to take your medicines even if you feel healthy. Talk with your doctor or pharmacist if you have trouble taking your medicines on time or at the correct dose.
• Reach or maintain a healthy weight: If you are overweight or obese, ask your primary care provider if healthy eating, physical activity, or other weight-loss treatments may help you manage your weight.
• Take care of your mental health: Managing diabetes can be hard. If you feel down, sad, or overwhelmed, learn about healthy ways to cope with stress. Consider talking to a mental health counselor or joining a support group.
• Work with your health care team: Managing diabetes takes a team. Your health care team may include a primary care provider, diabetes specialist, registered dietitian, or certified diabetes educator. Ask your primary care provider if you should talk with other health care professionals about your diabetes.

Take Charge Live Well Diabetes Programs

There is a lot you can do to keep your blood sugar in a healthy range. If you have type 2 diabetes (or are at risk), learn how to feel better and have more energy with the Take Charge, Live Well program. With consistent healthy lifestyle habits, you might be able to stay in control without medication.  

On Take Charge Live Well, click the "Health" tab, and then select "Journeys" and then "Diabetes." This is one of the reasonable alternatives for completing your healthy measurements (blood glucose).

Were you surprised when you found out you had diabetes? You're not alone. It may feel scary, but you don't have to try to figure it out yourself. Learn how to better manage your condition with a coach. They'll partner with you to create steps for lifestyle changes that will help you better manage your blood sugar. Plus, they'll provide support and resources to keep you on track to a healthier you.   

On Take Charge Live Well, click the "Programs" tab, then click "Coaching," and then click "Diabetes." You can receive $50 each month for attending a coaching session. 

Transform for Prediabetes program

• Do you know if you’re at risk of developing type 2 diabetes?  
• Find this program in the "Programs" section of the Take Charge Live Well hub
• Take the one-minute quiz to see if you’re eligible
• CDC-recognized diabetes prevention program offered entirely online
• Receive a 12-month healthy lifestyle education as well as a digital scale and activity tracker to help you monitor your progress
• Personal dedicated health coach for a whole year

All About Diabetes webinar: Wednesday, Nov. 15, 12-12:30 p.m.

This webinar will explain what diabetes is, how common i is, the different types of diabetes, what pre-diabetes is, long-term health effects of diabetes, symptoms, how insulin works, risk factors, testing to detect diabetes and ways to lower your risk for type 2 diabetes. Join the webinar at this link.

Stress First Aid

Everyone experiences stress. Stress First Aid can teach you to manage that stress and become resilient. The goal of Stress First Aid is to understand stress on a continuum, ranging from healthy and tolerable to ill and impairing, and help move people from unhealthy reactions to healthier ones. Please see this document for more information.