The Vance County Commissioners selected Leo Kelly, Jr. as chairman and Yolanda Feimster as vice-chair at its recent regular meeting. Kelly takes over from Dan Brummitt as chairman.

Kelly was appointed to the board of commissioners in November 2015 to represent District 5. He is retired from Vance-Granville Community College where he served as dean of continuing education. Kelly serves as president of the Community Relations Council for Kittrell Job Corps and is the financial secretary for his church, Cotton Memorial Presbyterian. He also works as a customer associate for Lowe’s Home Improvement store in Henderson.

Feimster was elected in 2016 to represent District 6. She is an attorney licensed to practice in North Carolina. She holds a B.A. degree in Political Science from UNC-Greensboro and a Juris Doctor (law) degree from UNC-Chapel Hill School of Law. She is an Associate minister at St. James Missionary Baptist Church on Oxford Road in Henderson.

The renovation of the former Eaton-Johnson campus is nearing completion, and County Manager Jordan McMillen updated the commission on the progress being made in order for the Department of Social Services and Senior Center to move in to their new building.

“Eaton Johnson is very close,” McMillen told WIZS News in an email today (Monday). “The pavement and landscaping went in last week and we are looking to move DSS and the Senior Center in during the third week in January if the certificate of occupancy is complete by then.  We will also have a ribbon-cutting and tours set up closer to move-in day,” he said.

During their Dec. 6 meeting, the commissioners also got the chance to officially meet and welcome McKinley Perkinson, the county’s new economic development director. Perkinson began her new role in mid-November, and most recently has worked with Franklin County’s economic development agency as a project manager to enhance the county’s website, online presence in the areas of economic development and tourism.

The commissioners received an update from Granville Vance Public Health Director Lisa Harrison about the state of public health in the county. According to data from Harrison, cancer, heart disease and stroke remain the top causes of death in the county.

A recent survey of county employees conducted by the UNC School of Government has turned up several areas of discontent, which county officials are hopeful could be eased by providing targeted training opportunities and following recommendations from the surveyor.

Three focus groups totaling 23 county employees were convened during the week of May 24 of 2021, and the Human Resources Committee comprised of Commissioners Carolyn Faines, Archie B. Taylor, Jr.  and Gordon Wilder met in July with UNC School of Government representatives to receive the results.

The three focus groups were titled Department of Social Services, Cross-organizational and Department heads. The results were shared at the August commissioners’ meeting, during which time several distinct themes emerged. The full report can be found at www.vancecounty.org and as part of the August commissioners’ meeting minutes.

The survey results captured employee sentiment, which ranged from feelings of disrespect to intimidation from supervisors. But the survey also reported that employees find their jobs interesting, they enjoy serving their community and have caring co-workers.

The recommendations, designed for the entire organization and not a specific department, include investing in supervisor training that emphasizes on effective communication, the role of supervisors as stewards and as a player in conflict resolution. Another recommendation is development of a set of values that govern and guide workplace behavior – to be developed at the employee level and involving the whole organization in the process.

Among the survey results were comments that ranged from employees enduring disrespect and intimidation from supervisors to feeling expendable or having their ideas not valued or taken seriously.

During the August meeting, county staff explained that efforts already are underway to provide additional training opportunities for supervisors, but those efforts have been hampered by the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. The HR committee discussed the importance of group trainings and felt that on-site workshops would be especially valuable for supervisors.

As for the suggestions for the board of commissioners, the survey results showed that employees value greatly the opinion of the commissioners, and they would like to see more commissioners attend employee events to show their interest in the county’s employees; the employees work hard to bring ideas for discussion – don’t dismiss them outright.

One idea the commissioners considered, but decided against pursuing, is taking over the responsibilities of the local Social Services board. A handful of counties in the state have made this switch, but Vance County commissioners decided not to join that group.

Commissioner Faines said the DSS board had not addressed several concerns from DSS employees, but Commissioner Taylor – who also sits on the DSS board – disputed that notion. It was reflected in the minutes that Taylor said the DSS board is focused on employee morale, employee treatment and the best operation of the department.

“When issues come up, they are addressed,” the minutes read. Taylor also said that the current structure is working properly and there is not need to change it.

Chairman Dan Brummitt said he would like to hold a work session to further discuss the matter.

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