Keynote
Remarks – October 10, 2007
“Closest to Home: Preserving the ‘Other’ National Archives”
by Dr. Allen Weinstein, Archivist of the United States
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Secretary
of State Wells, Director Niederer, members of the Legislature,
the State Records Committee, and distinguished leaders
of New
Jersey’s counties, cities and towns:
On behalf of the dedicated staff of the National Archives
and Records Administration in Washington, D.C. and College
Park,
Maryland, and our network of regional archives, records
centers and presidential libraries throughout the United
States,
I am
delighted to participate in the first formal program to
celebrate the remarkable success of New Jersey’s PARIS,
the Public Archives and Records Infrastructure Support
Grants Program
for local
government records.
When we speak of the National Archives, one immediately imagines
the stately edifice on the Mall in Washington, home to Declaration
of Independence, the Constitution, Bill of Rights, and millions
of other documentary treasures of the United States, or maybe
even Archives II, our even larger, state-of-the-art facility
opened in 1993 in College Park, Maryland.
That image is not incorrect. These iconic institutions
in the Washington area, along with our nationwide system
of
regional
archives and presidential libraries, serve America’s democracy
and the rights of her people by safeguarding and preserving
the records of the Federal Government.
But Federal archives and records contain far less than
half of the story of who we are as a nation. There is another,
larger “national archives” much closer to home for people in every
state and territory, and every local community in the United
States. The public records in the care of our state archives
and county and local governments nationwide constitute a rich,
essential, and often very personal source of documentation as
diverse as the people who created it, and who use it. The archives
and records of the states, counties and municipalities locally,
are every bit as important to citizens as those at the Federal
level—and often are more important.
We all use state and local public records—the “other” national
archives—to prove our identity, and protect our investments,
property and rights. Those who preserve and provide access to
state and local records—which includes virtually everyone in
this chamber tonight—honor a basic tenet of our democracy: the
citizens’ right to know the workings of their government.
I gladly accepted Karl Niederer’s invitation to come to Trenton
and participate in tonight’s program because I know that
New Jersey places a high value on the management of its
public records,
and leads the nation in investment in building and improving
the infrastructure of local government archives and records
programs.
The PARIS Grants Program launched here just three years
ago has enabled your counties and municipalities to chart
a bold
new course for local government records management. Since
2005,
all of New Jersey’s counties and most of its municipalities
have become partners with the state and with each other in starting
the development of sound local records programs. And here in
New Jersey you don’t just talk about it: in three years you
have carefully invested more than $73 million in this enterprise
statewide. The model of cooperative intergovernmental shared
services you have nurtured through PARIS—encouraging the 21
counties to become archives and records management “hubs” serving
both the county and the municipalities within their borders—is
worthy of emulation in other states.
What you are accomplishing in New Jersey—working collaboratively
through PARIS at all levels of government to improve local records
preservation and access—meshes remarkably with the strategic
vision and mission of the National Archives. From the moment
the President nominated me for the post of Archivist of the
United States in 2004, and in the two and a half years since
I took office, I have envisioned a role for NARA that extends
beyond serving as the keeper of Federal archives and records—a
lone vessel sailing in a self-contained lake of Federal government.
The public records of the nation after all, constitute, a much
larger ocean encompassing the Federal, state, and local. In
this vision, the National Archives’ role is to serve as
the flagship of a nationwide fleet of archives and records
institutions
and programs, Federal, state and local.
We’ve already made significant progress working towards this
vision, both here in New Jersey, and across the country. Last
year, NARA’s Northeast Regional Branch partnered closely
with your Division of Archives and Records Management to
develop
and co-present an innovative series of two-day training
workshops on disaster preparedness and vital records recovery
for all
21 counties, bringing together county records managers,
business administrators, emergency management officials,
and information
technology staff for the first time to discover the interdependency
of these agencies in restoring essential government services
in the aftermath of a disaster.
Later this month, NARA and DARM will celebrate American
Archives Month by co-presenting a forum on “e-Government and the Web,” exploring
how e-government portals solve records lifecycle, security
and authenticity challenges. The forum will draw on
expertise at the Federal, state and county levels, as well
as the private sector.
Nationally, in the wake of the 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina
disasters, NARA has partnered with the Council of State
Archivists, New
Jersey and several other states to launch a nationwide “Emergency
Preparedness Initiative” to assess and improve the states’ readiness
to respond to major regional disasters, natural and otherwise.
All 50 states participated, enthusiastically and in record
time.
Supported by NARA, CoSA has just received $2.6 million
in funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency
for
the “Intergovernmental
Preparedness for Essential Records (IPER) Project,” a three-year
program to develop Web- and CD-based training for state
and local governments on essential records and records-related
emergency
preparedness and response. The curriculum will be based
on
existing in-person workshops developed by the National
Archives and incorporate
additional content of particular interest or relevance
to state and local officials.
Not every local government represented here will walk away
with a “PARIS Award for Excellence.” Karl Niederer has explained
to me that the awards we confer tonight will go to “the best
of the best” in each category, recognizing outstanding
projects and programs that will serve as statewide models.
However,
PARIS
has lifted the archives and records boat of every county
and participating municipality, and each person here has
played
an important role in this success.
Ultimately, the real beneficiaries of your achievements are
the people of New Jersey, whose tax burden is lightened by the
cost-savings realized by their local governments through internal
operational efficiencies, intergovernmental shared services,
e-filing and e-recording, emergency preparedness, web access
to essential government records, and enhanced responsiveness
to their needs as citizens.
On behalf of the National Archives, I commend you for your
service to the local government archives and records programs
you represent,
and to the people of New Jersey and the United States whose
rich history—the “other” national archives—you hold in
trust.
Thank you. Back to PARIS Award Ceremony Main |
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| Governor
Jon Corzine and Secretary of State Nina Mitchell Wells are
pleased to establish
the first PARIS Awards for Excellence
in recognition of PARIS’s remarkable success and its stature
as the nation’s leading state program for upgrading the security,
integrity and efficiency of local government records administration.
The PARIS Awards recognize county and municipal grant recipients
who have done especially outstanding work in building and improving
the infrastructure of their local government archives and records
management functions during the program’s inaugural year,
2005-2006.
It is a special honor for us to have Archivist of the United States
Allen Weinstein join us for this occasion. As head of the National
Archives and Records Administration, Dr. Weinstein has championed
the cause of uniting Federal, state, and local government in collaborative
efforts to meet the common challenges of public records administration
in the 21st century.
Before
I introduce our speakers, I’d like to recognize some
colleagues both inside and outside state government who have been
especially supportive of my division and the PARIS Grants Program:
- Assistant
Secretary of State Kathy Kisko, whose guidance was indispensable
in shaping PARIS from its inception
- The members of the State Records Committee, who oversee PARIS:
— Chuck Chianese and Mike Tyger, for Acting State Treasurer Michellene
Davis
— Marc Pfeiffer, for DCA Local Government Services Director Susan
Jacobucci
— John Turi, for Attorney General Anne Milgram
and
— Fred Hansen, for State Auditor Richard Fair
- Barbara
Moran, Executive Director of the New Jersey Cultural Trust
and Acting Administrator of the State Museum
- Members of the State Historical Records Advisory Board:
— Marc Mappen, also Executive Director of the New Jersey Historical
Commission
— Lisa Mangiafico of Soroptimist International
— Jim Turk, also Curator at the State Museum
and
— Ben Primer of Princeton University
- Bill
Dressel, Executive Director of the League of Municipalities
- Carl
Block, immediate Past President of the Constitutional Officers
Association of New Jersey, Ocean County Clerk,
and Ocean County’s
PARIS Project Manager
[Secretary
of State Wells Introduction]
Secretary of State Nina
Mitchell Wells has been the driving force behind a revitalization
of the New Jersey Department of State since
her appointment by Governor Corzine in January 2006. Although PARIS
predated her arrival by several months, its emergence as the most
potent state grants program for improving local records has taken
place largely under her watch. Besides being an enthusiastic supporter
of PARIS and DARM’s program as a whole, Secretary Wells has
been a tireless and articulate advocate for the preservation and
public appreciation of New Jersey’s rich history, culture,
and arts, and she has actively promoted volunteerism initiatives.
With the recent transfer of the Division of Travel and Tourism
to our Department, she has encouraged strong emphasis on developing
New Jersey’s potential as a cultural and heritage tourism
destination. Ladies and gentlemen, Secretary Wells . . . .
[Secretary
Wells speaks, then introduces Javier Inclán]
[Javier Inclán
remarks]
[Allen Weinstein
Introduction]
Professor Allen Weinstein is the ninth Archivist of the United
States, nominated by President George W. Bush and confirmed by
the United States Senate in February 2005. Prior to his appointment
as Archivist, he served from 1985 to 2003 as President of The Center
for Democracy, a Washington, DC-based non-profit foundation he
created to promote and strengthen the democratic process. Earlier
in his career he was University Professor and Professor of History
at Boston University from 1985-89, and University Professor at
Georgetown University from 1981-1984.
His list of distinguished
scholarly publications and articles fills an entire page, but
rather than list them here, I would like
to introduce a man who, both as a nominee and a confirmed appointee
to the post of Archivist of the United States, has had his hand
on the pulse of where archives and records in the 21st century
need to go, and a bold vision of how the National Archives in Washington
and more than a dozen regional branches around the country might
for the first time partner intentionally with the states and local
governments of the United States to address the difficult challenges
of securing the entire nation’s public records in the information
age. He has personally encouraged the National Archives to help
build New Jersey’s state and local records programs through
direct partnerships, and he has been a keen observer of our experience
with PARIS since 2005. Ladies and gentlemen, Archivist of the United
States Allen Weinstein . . . .
[Allen Weinstein
presents keynote remarks]
PARIS AWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE
The first award categories
were chosen by DARM based on the State Records Committee’s strategic priorities and categories of
eligible projects funded during the program’s first year.
We began the selection process by placing in nomination each county
or municipality that completed a grant project in one or more of
the eight award categories listed below. The first award recipients
were chosen from among the nominees based on such qualitative criteria
as demonstrated compliance with PARIS Grants Program guidelines,
close alignment with SRC priorities and contracts, evidence of
strong commitment to the project, successful outcome, and the anticipated
long-term impact of the project both within the grantee’s
jurisdiction and throughout the state.
As Secretary Wells has
said, every county and municipality participating in PARIS and
represented here tonight is a winner. This event celebrates
your successes individually and collectively. But from PARIS’s
inception we have made a commitment to spotlight outstanding projects
and programs that provide best-practices models for the entire
state. Your collective success has made it very hard indeed to
choose the ones that we can call the “best of the best.”
The categories for the PARIS Awards for Excellence for Program
Year 2005-2006 are as follows:
I. Public Access to Historical Records (pre-1925)
II. Enterprise-wide Approach to Electronic Records
III. Shared Services—County-to-County
IV. Shared Services—County-to-Municipalities
V. Outstanding Project Management—Municipal
VI. Outstanding Project Management—County
VII. Disaster Preparedness (Infrastructure Development)
VIII. Comprehensive and Enterprise-Wide Approach to Archives and Records Management
I will describe each
category in turn, list all of the eligible nominees in the category,
and announce the winner. At that time,
we will invite those representing the winning county or municipality
to come forward and receive their award from Secretary of State
Wells. One spokesperson for each winner will then have an opportunity
to make brief acceptance remarks here at the Clerk’s podium.
Please hold those remarks to about one minute, as we have several
to go through. Posed photographs of award recipients and their
associates with Secretary Wells and Dr. Weinstein will be taken
at the conclusion of tonight’s program.
All of this year’s
nominees and award winners and their projects are listed in this
handsome PARIS Annual Report and Awards
Program booklet, just received from the printer yesterday. Copies
are available for everyone at the conclusion of the program. Please
see a DARM staff member at the exit doors to obtain your copy.
Category I: Public Access to Historical Records (pre-1925)
Awarded to a county that used PARIS funds to improve public access
to historical records in a highly significant way, including the
conservation, general preservation, and reformatting of historical
records.
Eligible for this category are all counties that completed a project
involving the reformatting of historical records, and documented
an increase in public access to these records.
The nominees
are:
- Atlantic County—Atlantic
used a grant of $566,859 to preserve, conserve and reformat
historical records held by the Clerk of
the Board, County Clerk, Sheriff and Surrogate. The county
developed a detailed conservation treatment plan for nearly
500 bound volumes,
and conserved and microfilmed those volumes most in need.
- Bergen
County—Bergen used a grant of $560,700 to preserve,
conserve and reformat records held by the County Clerk.
The county imaged historical records of the County Clerk, including
naturalizations,
filed maps and trade names, and conserved several bound
ancient deed books.
- Cumberland
County—Cumberland used
a grant of $342,000 to preserve, conserve and reformat records
held by the Clerk
of the
Board and County Clerk. The county imaged naturalization
and older land records housed by the County Clerk, and conserved
and imaged
minutes and Alms House records held by the Clerk of
the Board.
- Essex County—Essex
used a grant of $770,382 for preservation imaging and microfilming
of records held by
the Clerk of the
Board and Department of Public Works and Parks. The
county imaged maps,
drawings, minutes and loose filings of both offices,
including records dating back to the 1680s.
- Gloucester
County—Gloucester used a grant of $251,708
to inventory, preserve, conserve and reformat records
held by the
Clerk of the Board, Surrogate, County Clerk, Engineer
and Gloucester County Historical Society. The county completed
a detailed conservation
treatment plan for records of the County Clerk
and Surrogate, inventoried of historical records deposited
at the
Gloucester
County Historical
Society, imaged historical records including naturalizations,
and conserved several bound volumes of the County
Surrogate.
- Morris
County—Morris used a grant of $136,675
to conserve and reformat historical records held by the
County Clerk and
Heritage Commission. The county completed the
conservation of historical
records held by the Heritage Commission, including
slave births and manumissions. The county also created
preservation microfilm
of these records, as well as naturalizations,
marriages, incorporations, building contracts, and early court
records.
- Passaic
County—Passaic used a grant of $791,340
to preserve, conserve and reformat records held by the County
Clerk, Surrogate
and Sheriff. The county imaged historical records
including naturalizations, name changes, estate files, and
criminal identification records,
dating back to the county’s founding
in 1837.
- Somerset
County—Somerset used
a grant of $215,000 to conserve and reformat
records held by the County Clerk and Surrogate.
The
county conserved naturalizations, slave births,
manumissions
and estate files dating back to 1804. In addition,
preservation microfilm
was created to enhance public access and for
disaster recovery.
and
- Union County—Union used a grant of $311,065 to conserve,
image and microfilm bound map volumes held
by the County Clerk, including several dozen bound atlas and
map books.
And the PARIS Award for Excellence in Category I goes to: Passaic
County
Karen Brown, County Clerk
William Bate, County Surrogate
Jerry Speziale, County Sheriff
Frances Purciello, PARIS Project Manager
Receiving the award for Passaic County is Fran Purciello.
Category II: Enterprise-wide Approach to Electronic Records
Awarded to the county that began implementation of an outstanding
enterprise-wide approach to electronic storage, access and recovery
of electronic records, including establishing a comprehensive development
process and installing appropriate infrastructure to support expansion
of the enterprise-wide system.
Eligible for this category are county governments that completed
a project involving the implementation of an enterprise-wide electronic
document management system that can be in future years. Completion
of the project includes obtaining system certification by the State
Records Committee.
The nominees
are:
- Atlantic
County—Atlantic used a grant of $344,042 for the
establishment of several data-campuses within
the county, as well as a stand-alone imaging system within
the records management
office.
The county procured equipment allowing the expansion
of their
existing imaging system, and creation of redundancy
back-up systems.
- Bergen
County—Bergen used a grant
of $304,913 to implement an enterprise-wide electronic
document imaging
system pilot
within the Clerk of the Board and the Board
of Taxation.
- Burlington
County—Burlington used a grant
of $310,855 to implement an enterprise-wide electronic document
imaging
system
pilot within Human Resources, Legal, Division
of Solid
Waste Management, Division of Parks, Division
of Cultural Affairs
and Tourism and
the Division of Land Preservation. The project
included the purchase of a digital image storage unit capable
of holding
over 4 terabytes.
- Essex County—Essex
used a grant of $183,504 to implement an
enterprise-wide electronic document imaging
system pilot
within the Departments of Economic Development
and Citizens
Services.
- Gloucester
County—Gloucester
used a grant of $292,316 to implement
an enterprise-wide electronic document
imaging
system
pilot with the following six functional
units: Clerk of the Board, Purchasing,
Human Resources, Administration,
County
Counsel and
Medical Examiner.
- Hudson
County—Hudson
used a grant of $111,767 to implement
an enterprise-wide electronic document
imaging
pilot within
the Law Department.
- Mercer
County—Mercer
used a grant of $174,167 to implement
an enterprise-wide electronic document
imaging
pilot within
the Clerk of the Board and Administration
offices.
- Ocean County—Ocean
used a grant of $567,916 to implement
an enterprise-wide electronic document
imaging
pilot within
the Office of the Clerk of the
Board.
- Salem County—Salem
used a grant of $217,068 to implement an enterprise-wide electronic
document management system pilot
within the Office of the Clerk
of the Board and the County Surrogate.
- Sussex
County—Sussex
used a grant of $71,209 to implement an enterprise-wide
electronic document management system pilot
with the County Surrogate’s
Office.
- Union County—Union
used a grant of $455,158 to
implement an enterprise-wide
electronic document management
system pilot
within the Office of the Clerk
of the Board and the County
Surrogate.
and
- Warren
County—Warren used grants totaling $428,012
to scan images of the County Board of Chosen Freeholders, Engineer
and
County Clerk into the county’s
existing certified enterprise-wide
document management system.
And the PARIS Award for Excellence in Category II goes to: Atlantic
County
Edward McGettigan, County Clerk
Donna Lenzi, Project Manager
Receiving the
award for Atlantic County is Donna Lenzi.
Category III: Shared Services—County to County
Awarded to the county that provided the most outstanding model
for sharing records management services between two or more counties.
Eligible for this category are county governments that implemented
a significant records management infrastructure-building program
in partnership with multiple county governments.
There was only one county eligible in this category for this program
year, but the example set by this PARIS grantee has paved the way
for significant improvements in the management of local records
throughout the state and demonstrated clearly that solutions shared
between county governments not only work, but work exceptionally
well.
Monmouth County used a grant of $816,662 for the expansion of
the e-recording portal hosted by the county, which allows for electronic
filing of land documents, including deeds and mortgages. In program
year 2005-2006, the project benefited eleven participating counties:
Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Essex, Mercer,
Monmouth, Ocean, Passaic and Sussex. And it saved a vast sum of
money: if each of these counties had pursued an e-recording solution
independently, development and implementation costs would have
exceeded $20 million.
So the PARIS Award for Excellence in Category III goes to: Monmouth
County
M. Claire French, County Clerk
Mark Acker, Project Manager
Receiving the
award for Monmouth County is Mark Acker.
Category
IV: Shared Services—County to Municipalities
Awarded to the county that provided the most outstanding model
for sharing records management services between a county and its
constituent municipal governments.
Eligible for this category are county governments that implemented
a significant records management services program in partnership
with multiple municipal governments.
The nominees are:
- Burlington
County—Burlington used a grant of $45,000 to
conduct a shared records management services needs assessment.
The county received a report identifying shared services
opportunities between the county and its constituent municipal
governments, and
recommends future county-sponsored projects.
- Camden
County—Camden
used a grant of $113,700 to provide individual records management
needs assessment reports for all
34 participating municipal governments, as well as a county-wide
records management shared services report. Camden is the
first county—not only in New Jersey, but in the nation—to
complete detailed individual records management needs assessments
and inventories for all of its municipalities.
and
- Middlesex
County—Middlesex used a grant of $24,995
to purchase equipment to allow the county’s Division of
Archives and Records Management to microfilm the vital records
of its constituent
municipal governments.
And the PARIS Award for Excellence in Category IV goes to: Camden
County
James Beach, County Clerk
Maria Efstratiades, Project Manager and Records Manager Receiving the award for Camden County is Maria Efstratiades.
Category
V: Outstanding Project Management—Municipal
Awarded to the municipal government that has displayed the most
outstanding project management skills, including successful PARIS
grants project management and demonstrating leadership within its
organization and among its peer municipalities.
Eligible for this category are all 11 participating first-year
municipal grantees.
The top contender in
Category V hit the ground running upon receipt of its initial
PARIS grant, using the township’s excellent
project management resources and sophisticated information technology
support to complete its project and continue preexisting records
management projects in meeting all DARM regulatory requirements.
In addition, the township has provided leadership to its municipal
counterparts as they seek PARIS grant funding, and strive to improve
records management generally.
The PARIS Award for Excellence in Category V goes to: The
Township of Woodbridge:
John Mitch, Project Manager and Township Clerk
Receiving the award for Woodbridge Township is Frank Heslin.
Category VI: Outstanding Project Management—County
Awarded to the county government that has displayed the most outstanding
project management skills, including successful PARIS grants project
management and demonstrating leadership within its organization
and among its peer counties.
Eligible for this category are all 21 county grantees.
Excellent project management
is not only the key to success with PARIS grants, but the indispensable
ingredient for records management
leadership within the organization and throughout the county. This
county holds the distinction of being the first to have its records
management needs assessment, inventory and strategic planning document
accepted by the State Records Committee. The county has also worked
tirelessly with PARIS to support its municipal constituents eligible
for PARIS grants. The county demonstrated its commitment to a long-term
records management program by assuming responsibility for 100 percent
of a records manager’s salary and benefits prior to the end
of the first grant year.
The PARIS Award for Excellence in Category VI goes to: Union County
Joanne Rajoppi, County Clerk
Nicole DiRado, Project Manager and Clerk of the Board of Chosen
Freeholders
Receiving the
award for Union County is Freeholder Daniel P. Sullivan.
Category VII: Disaster Preparedness (Infrastructure)
Awarded to the county that demonstrated exceptional understanding
of the critical nature of disaster planning, preparedness and recovery
in their first-year application through a PARIS grant-funded project
that created infrastructure to assure the continuation of government
operations in the event of an emergency.
Eligible for this category are county governments that completed
disaster preparedness infrastructure advancement projects.
The nominees
are:
- Cape
May County—Cape May used a grant of $598,677 for the
development of a Regional Records Recovery Center (RRRC)
capable of withstanding a category four hurricane.
- Gloucester
County—Gloucester used a grant of $278,044 for
the creation of a county-wide disaster preparedness and recovery
plan, and retrofitting of a facility in Clayton to house
equipment for image storage redundancy.
and
- Hudson
County—Hudson used a grant of $644,184 to upgrade
the county’s infrastructure between data campuses
in Jersey City and Secaucus for the routine backing-up
of data, information
and records.
Competition in this category was significant, with three excellent,
but very different projects that provide prototypes for other counties
to replicate.
The winning county’s Regional Records Recovery Center (RRRC)
project was the most comprehensive and directly responsive to the
disaster threats specific to its region. It leveraged both county
and PARIS grant funds to implement the project quickly. The center
provides a hot-site for the re-establishment of government operations
in the wake of a disaster, and can also accommodate participation
by the county’s municipalities.
And the PARIS Award for Excellence in Category VII goes to: Cape
May County
Rita Marie Fulginiti, County Clerk and Project Manager
Lizabeth Shay, Records Manager
Receiving the
award for Cape May County is Rita Fulginiti.
Category VIII:
Comprehensive and Enterprise-wide Approach to Archives and Records
Management
Awarded to the county whose PARIS grant-funded projects encompassed
multiple State Records Committee priorities, and had far-reaching
effects on archives and records management in the county government.
Eligible for this category are all 21 county grantees.
Here again, the competition was fierce, as so many counties embraced
the full range of priorities established by the State Records Committee,
from preservation of ancient archival documents to advanced records
technology.
The winning county’s initial PARIS grant application demonstrated
a thorough understanding of the need to address all aspects of
records management, from basic records inventories and planning
to developing disaster recovery capabilities. The county’s
balanced, comprehensive approach to PARIS included general records
management, technology enhancements and historical records preservation
and access—addressing each of the major priorities set forth
by the State Records Committee for the program year.
And the PARIS Award for Excellence in Category VIII goes to: Gloucester
County
William Taylor, Project Manager
Michelle Caple, Records Manager
Receiving the award for Gloucester County is Bill Taylor.
Before we close, I would like to recognize a small band of
highly dedicated, greatly overworked staff who make the PARIS
Grants
Program run (in alphabetical order) like no other unit in state
government:
- Melissa
Backes, archivist and PARIS liaison to the north Jersey
counties and municipalities
- Beth Colosimo,
records analyst and PARIS liaison to central Jersey local governments
- Sean Curry,
senior archivist and PARIS liaison to the southern region counties
and municipalities
and
- Jennifer
Driscoll Petrino, PARIS Grants Administrator since April 2005.
I want to thank Jennifer in particular
for her leadership
of the program over the past two-and-a-half years.
Most of you already know that Jennifer will be leaving DARM
at the end of this
week to accept a new post in the Department of Human
Services. All of us in this chamber owe Jennifer a
debt
of gratitude
for her contribution to this enterprise, and I know
you’ll
join me in wishing her well in her new assignment.
Sean Curry will assume
general administrative oversight of PARIS after Jennifer’s
departure, and Kenia Nunez will join the staff as fiscal and
contracts administrator. We all wish both of
them well, and a manual on stress management, as they takes on
these duties.
That concludes our first PARIS Awards for Excellence program.
We again congratulate those who have received awards tonight, but
all present here, from every county and every municipality in New
Jersey, deserve sincere congratulations for their accomplishments
in the three short years since PARIS was launched. You can be justly
proud of your accomplishments, which are transforming local government
administration in our state at a pace unequalled in the nation.
As you leave here tonight, go in the knowledge that every other
state in the Union is watching what you do, and what we do together,
in this unique partnership between state and local government.
Thank you, and good night.
I would remind all award winners to come forward at this time
for photos with Secretary Wells and Dr. Weinstein.
Back
to PARIS Awards Ceremony Main
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