The Division of Forensic Science is a nationally accredited forensic laboratory system serving state and local law enforcement agencies, medical examiners and Commonwealth's Attorneys in Virginia. The examiners provide technical assistance and training, evaluate and analyze evidence, interpret results and provide expert testimony related to the full spectrum of physical evidence recovered from crime scenes.

"We are here today to inaugurate a partnership, one that reinforces Virginia's position as a national and innovative criminal justice leader. This is a tremendous opportunity for Virginia to lead the nation in forensic science training," said Governor Jim Gilmore during official opening ceremonies. Among the other dignitaries on hand were U.S. Senator Orrin G. Hatch of Utah, Paul B. Ferrara, director of the Virginia Division of Forensic Science and Marcella F. Fierro, Virginia's chief medical examiner.

The Institute provides state-of-the-art training in sophisticated medical and scientific crime-fighting techniques. The one-year program leads to certification as forensic experts for the biologists, toxicologists and pathologists who complete the course. Offering the only practical training of its kind in the country, and perhaps the world, the Institute has enrolled students from as far away as Scotland. The first class consists of six students in DNA analysis, two in toxicology and two in forensic pathology.

Beaming with delight at the opening of the new Forensic Institute were two champions of the effort to create it: Governor Jim Gilmore and the Institute's chief benefactor Patricia Cornwell, a celebrated crime novelist.

"It's a small beginning," said Ferrara, "but as it expands, it is going to be a major player in forensic science, not only in Virginia but throughout the world." Ferrara serves with Fierro as co-director of the Institute. James E. Kouten is the Institute's executive director. The core elements of the Institute are the Forensic Science Center and the Forensic Medicine Center. Staff of the two offices will serve as instructors, allowing students to be taught in a working forensic laboratory. Analytical sections within the division include those for bloodstain pattern analysis, controlled substances, firearms and tool marks, forensic biology (DNA tracking), forensic toxicology, processing latent prints, and analyzing trace evidence. Demand for highly trained certified forensic personnel will continue to increase as the use of technology to investigate crimes and crime scenes expands to meet an ever complex and increasing criminal justice caseload. The Institute will help to meet that demand by combining academic and practical training in order to certify individuals in the various forensic disciplines.

Forensic technicians Kate Philpott (l) and Autumn Massiello prepare convicted felon blood samples for storage in the DNA data bank. Stephen Atkinson, forensic scientist-in-training, discharges a weapon into a bullet recovery tank for later comparison to a bullet from a crime scene.

The Virginia Institute of Forensic Science and Medicine benefits from the support of a distinguished Board of Directors. Listed here are the eight members of the Institute's eventual 11-person board who had been appointed by Currents press time. Joseph Benedetti, Director of the Department of Criminal Justice Services Patricia Cornwell, Author Linda A. Fairstein, Chief, Sex Crimes Prosecution Unit Manhattan District Attorney's Office Paul B. Ferrara, Director of the Virginia Division of Forensic Science Marcella F. Fierro, Virginia's Chief Medical Examiner The Hon. Orrin Hatch, United States Senator Dr. E. Anne Peterson, Acting Virginia Health Commissioner Larry Sabato, Director of the Center for Government Studies, University of Virginia

A Vision for Success Virginia Industries for the Blind's Partnership with Taxation Fuels Jobs, Productivity, Revenue and Fulfillment   Here is a valuable lesson that can benefit employers and individuals alike: Seeing things differently can bring big rewards. In today's fast-paced, super-charged work environment, rewards come to those who are willing to cast off outdated notions of how a job gets done and who does it.	Marie Brinas, a collector for the Department of Taxation, demonstrates some of the advanced technological devices developed in recent years that have opened the workplace for many blind workers, enabling them to succeed in jobs that once were beyond their reach.
By coupling advanced technologies with a willingness to embrace change, and by taking a fresh approach to solving old problems, employers can unleash a torrent of potential from existing and new employees, even those with physical disabilities who only a few short years ago were widely thought to be incapable of performing certain tasks. This is the lesson being demonstrated and taught every day at the Virginia Department of Taxation's Court Debt Collections Office (CDCO). It's difficult to argue with success. Three years ago, when Virginia Industries for the Blind (VIB) put forth a proposal to place persons with low vision in solid jobs as collectors within Taxation, staff from both agencies stepped away from preconceived notions and saw, "with new eyes," the intriguing possibilities of a working collaboration, not only between two state agencies, but also between two Secretariats. Secretary of Health and Human Resources Claude Allen and Secretary of Finance Ron Tillett enthusiastically endorsed the idea and participated in a recent news conference to celebrate the program's extraordinary success. "Joint ventures of this magnitude are not something you see every day in state government," said Tillett. "This is a wonderful example of a thriving joint venture between two innovative state agencies. This unit and the VIB employees have been extremely beneficial for the entire Commonwealth _ for state and local governments and for taxpayers." There is no exaggeration in Tillett's statement. When the Virginia General Assembly first authorized the CDCO in 1994, and it began its operations a year later, there was a staggering, one-year backlog of $39 million worth of unpaid judgments outstanding throughout the Commonwealth. With a first year goal to collect $2 million, the CDCO exceeded that margin by more than $700,000. Since then, its efficiency and the rising level of successful collections of court fees and fines has been nothing short of spectacular. In fiscal year 1996, the CDCO collected $7.5 million. In 1997 it pulled in $12.7 million. More than $18 million was collected during 1998 and the most recent collection figure for the 1999 fiscal year just ended surpassed $19 million. Considering the comparatively modest initial outlay of $950,000 used to establish the office, and the fact that the CDCO and VIB are entirely self-supporting, few investments can boast such handsome rewards so quickly. Funding for all of the CDCO's operations, including its 1998 reimbursement of the initial $950,000 provided for start-up and the salaries of its employees, comes from contingency fees the Office earns from the 253 courts which employ its services. Altogether, the CDCO has collected more than $60 million and holds an inventory of 449,936 cases valued at $163 million. But behind the welcomed financial numbers is the priceless reward of the investment made in people — the CDCO employees who have made it all possible. The Office employs a total of 47 employees. Ten of them are blind or have significant visual impairments. Several more visually impaired employees are being trained to join the CDCO by the end of this year. "Over the past 10 years, technology has drastically changed the work environment, making jobs that heretofore would have been extremely difficult, if not impossible, for blind people to perform available to them. Now they can do these jobs as well as anyone, and sometimes they can do them even better," noted Dr. W. Roy Grizzard, Commissioner of the Department for the Visually Handicapped, VIB's parent agency. The CDCO's top collector — among the sighted and non-sighted employees — is Susan Muhlenbeck. Although she is totally blind, Muhlenbeck averages a daily collection rate of 125 third-party liens, as compared to the normal rate of 50 liens per day, noted her supervisor Holly Anna Jones, CDCO's director since 1997. Muhlenbeck also handles 10 percent of the approximately 300 telephone calls fielded each day by the CDCO staff. Said Sharon Hodges, another blind employee working at CDCO, "Before losing my sight, I worked as a paralegal. This is the first job I've held since then. I determined that I would not be defeated because of my loss of sight. I knew that I could still do everything I used to do when I had my sight."
Just how difficult is it for an employer to integrate a worker with a severe visual impairment into a work team of sighted employees? The experience at Taxation demonstrates it is not nearly so problematic as most supervisors and employees might think. "One of my major initiatives and a central theme of our strategic plan — `Vision 2004' — is creating and nurturing a strong sense of teamwork among our employees and providing an environment in which each employee can utilize their individual skills to the fullest. I can assure you that those employees who have come to us from the Department of the Visually Handicapped are valuable employees who have contributed to our success equally with our sighted employees" shared Danny M. Payne, Commissioner of the Department of Taxation. Steve Bergin and Krista Leech are CDCO Team Leaders, supervising teams of 10 to 15 collectors. "Our biggest concern was etiquette, the do's and don'ts of working with the new employees, knowing what to say and what not to say," said Leech. "All along, we were confident that the work assignments could be accomplished. And it has worked out that way," she said. "We are happy to be able to say that there is no difference in treatment [of the low vision employees], and there is no difference in performance.," Bergin added. From an employer's perspective, there are additional advantages to this jobs partnership: each VIB-trained employee has a job coach who will work on-site with the employee until the work assignment has been mastered. The job coach, as well as any specialized equipment and technology required to perform the job, is provided at no cost to the employer. "We may not be as fast as Kelly Services in filling a vacant position, but we won't send people into a job situation if they are not prepared to perform well. That would be the worst thing we could do, not only for the employer but for the employee as well," assured Rick Bohrer, VIB's plant manager. Another benefit: VIB-trained employees are contract workers placed on different job sites. "We are not a sheltered workshop," Bohrer noted. "Our service employees work in solid, competitive-level positions. They are covered by the same hospitalization and health benefits plans offered for regular state employees, and they participate in a 401(K) retirement plan." A special advantage for state agencies is that the hiring of VIB's contract workers does not affect the agency's MEL (maximum authorized employment level for the number of jobs a state agency can fill). Bob Berrang, deputy commissioner of DVH and VIB's general manager, is the principal mover responsible for initiating this growing partnership. "In today's extremely tight labor market, our pool of available talent is especially attractive, not only for state jobs, but for private companies, too," he said. "What we have here is a true `win-win' situation. Because so many employers refuse to provide opportunities to so many capable and willing workers with low vision or blindness, many talented people are forced to use public subsidies. Here, we are taking tax consumers and turning them into taxpayers without the use of tax dollars. We hope that other state agencies and private employers will see the tremendous opportunity we provide for them to alleviate their own manpower needs." Grizzard added: "For every dollar we receive for visual rehabilitation services, we return $11. But no one can put a price on the human dignity of providing for oneself, of having independence and caring for one's own family. We know we are making positive contributions all around." A recent report cited as more than 70 percent the actual number of Americans with low vision who are unemployed or under-employed. Considering the overwhelmingly successful experience of the Department of Taxation's venture with VIB, the real question might be: Who, here, is really blind?

FEEDBACK Achieving Work/Life Balance This is part of a series of articles to inform state employees about the results of Governor Gilmore's statewide employee survey and town hall meetings, as well as to address common questions and concerns. Each article will focus on a specific topic and correspond with the subjects of most concern to the many employees who participated in the Governor's outreach efforts. The statewide employee survey and town hall meetings provided significant insight into work/life issues that determine whether or not employees believe the Commonwealth, as an employer, is good, bad or indifferent when it comes to providing worker flexibility in emergency or routine family situations. By way of definition, work/life issues describe common life or family situations that tug at an employee's limited time and energy in a way that affects that employee's performance on the job. Or, conversely, work/life issues arise whenever the demands of an employee's job affects his ability to reasonably attend to personal family matters that also demand his attention. Typical work/life issues that affect large numbers of employees and often require workplace flexibility include child care situations, school responsibilities, caring for dependent parents, attending to medical needs, dealing with a pregnancy, a death in the family and a host of other personal matters that most employees will experience at one time or another. As an employer, the Commonwealth's workplace flexibility policies are among the most progressive available among public or private sector organizations. Of those employees who returned completed surveys, 75 percent would recommend the state as a good place to work and 65 percent would recommend their own agencies as good places to work. Another 83 percent reported flexibility to leave work to attend to personal matters as they arose, with 60 percent saying their agencies allow for flexible working arrangements. Working on alternative schedules, or "flex-time," is offered by the agencies employing 61 percent of the survey respondents. In contrast, however, and based upon survey and town hall responses which might seem contradictory, it appears that many employees are not aware of the Commonwealth's work/life policies and/or that they are being unevenly applied by state agencies. Seventy-eight percent of survey respondents said the state should be more flexible in personnel matters, and 59 percent reported that policies and procedures are not usually applied equally to all employees. Some variance in the application of broad state policies by individual agencies is necessary and desirable to conform to specific business requirements of a particular agency. Most state personnel policies are open to broad interpretation and the discretion of individual agency management in their application because no centrally developed, "cookie cutter" approach can ever be workable in all situations for a work force the size of Virginia's. Still, where no business requirement exists to prevent the application of flexible work policies, the Commonwealth encourages such flexibility in a number of official policies. Among these "worker-friendly" policies are: Administrative Leave (Policy 4.05): Paid leave that is provided for the purposes of court appearances (unless the employee is a criminal defendant) or related proceedings; to serve on state councils and other state bodies; to resolve work related conflicts; to participate in complaints of employment discrimination; to attend administrative hearings, and to interview for other state positions. (Civil leave falls into this category.) Flex Time (Policy 1.25): Agencies have the authority to establish alternate work schedules that differ from the standard workweek provided these schedules promote efficient agency operations and meet business necessity (e.g., four 10-hour work days in a seven day period). Leave Sharing (Policy 4.35): This policy permits an employee to donate annual leave to another employee who may need additional leave as a result of a personal illness or accident. Donations are in the form of annual leave only and are donated in eight-hour increments. Recipients must have a zero leave balance and must have been placed on Leave Without Pay for ten consecutive workdays per medical condition per 365-day period. Employees enrolled in the Virginia Sickness and Disability Program are not eligible for leave sharing since this Program provides some levels of income replacement. Leave to Assist Schools (4.40): Leave to assist schools provides paid leave up to 8 hours per calendar year to participate in school activities. It promotes employees' involvement in the education of the state's youth by allowing employees to attend any public or private preschool, elementary, middle or high school function in which their children are participating or to meet with school administrators or teachers concerning their children. Employees with or without children may volunteer to assist any public preschool, elementary, middle or high school where a teacher or administrator has approved such work. Telecommuting: Although there is no specific policy at this time, telecommuting is defined as a work arrangement in which agencies permit employees to perform their usual job duties at an alternate work location in accordance with their same performance expectations and other mutually agreed upon terms. It is an effort to support the Virginia Energy Plan and general work efficiencies. Agencies approve telecommuting on a case by case basis, depending on the needs of the individual agency. In addition, existing policies allow employees to set aside pre-tax contributions to medical and child care accounts, provide for compensatory leave for salaried employees in some situations and permit the use of one-third of sick leave balances for extended leave taken under the Family and Medical Leave Act. These and other policies that accommodate employees in their effort to be successful both at work and at home are outlined in more detail in the Department of Personnel and Training's Policies and Procedures Manual. This information also is available from DPT's internet Web site, at http://www.dpt.state.va.us DPT encourages state employees and supervisors to familiarize themselves with the Commonwealth's policies in their quest to make the state's workplace flexible enough to accommodate the difficult demands placed on employees with significant family commitments. The Commonwealth, through DPT's policy division, conducts a regular review of state policies to ensure that the state remains a competitive employer and that state government remains a good place to work for employees with families. In the normal course of business, certain policies may be tailored to the realities of each agency's business, which may vary from agency to agency.

Virginia's Finest Products Take Center Stage in `Septober' Employees to Vie for Gift Basket

If Georgia has peaches, Wisconsin has cheese and Florida has oranges, what does Virginia have? The answer is Virginia's Finest, an extensive array of products ranging from peanuts and gourmet foods, to wine, vegetables, fruits, meats and confections. All meet quality standards established by their industries and approved by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS). VDACS will conduct its annual fall promotion of Virginia's Finest agricultural products from September 15 through October 15. Also referred to as Septober, this month-long promotion aims to increase consumer awareness about, and purchases of, Virginia's Finest products. To help kick off the promotion, a contest will be held for state employees. The prizes are a Virginia's Finest gift basket and Virginia Cooks cookbooks. (See contest details and entry form) During Septober, major Virginia newspapers will publish Virginia's Finest special sections the week of September 13 that will include articles about Virginia agricultural products, recipes and a contest for consumers. Virginia's Finest television and radio spots will air statewide during September and October on stations that are members of the Virginia Association of Broadcasters. To encourage major grocery chains and specialty retailers in Virginia to create displays of Virginia's Finest products, VDACS will sponsor a retailer display contest during Septober. The Virginia's Finest Trademark Program is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. Administered by VDACS, the program is designed to identify, differentiate and promote the best agricultural products grown or produced in Virginia. More than 500 Virginia companies participate in the program. The eventual winners will have answered the following two questions and mailed their completed entry form to the address listed below by October 1. On October 15, the winners will be selected at random from those entries bearing the correct answers. Prizes: 1st place - a gift basket of Virginia's Finest products; 2nd and 3rd places - a Virginia Cooks cookbook.

Contest Entry Form Q: If Georgia has peaches, Wisconsin has cheese and Florida has oranges, what does Virginia have? A: (Please print:)______________________________________________________________ Q: What are the dates for the Fall 1999 Promotion of Virginia's Finest products? A: (Please print:)______________________________________________________________ Your Name: ____________________________________________ Name of State Agency: ___________________________________________ Address: ____________________________________________________ Daytime Telephone Number: ( )____________________________ One entry per person. No photocopied entries accepted. Contest open to active and retired state employees. Mail completed entry form to: Va. Dept. of Agriculture and Consumer Services, 1100 Bank St., Suite 1024, Richmond, VA 23219.

CVC Update A Team Effort for Charity Members of the CVC Advisory Council have worked diligently in recent years to restructure the Combined Virginia Campaign and better meet the needs of the state's diverse work force. Among the changes is a new name. CVC now refers to the "Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign." Governor Jim Gilmore has renewed his personal commitment to the CVC by again agreeing to serve as honorary chairman. "We all recognize the importance of helping those in need and reaching out to our communities. The state work force historically has been very generous through the CVC, and I'm committed to helping out with this effort." Virginia's native son Bruce Hornsby has agreed to the use of his song, "I Will Walk With You" from the album Scenes from the Southside, on a campaign web site and film. Thanks to the work of the Virginia Information Providers Network, donors can research the charities of their choice on the CVC's web site and hyperlink to those charities that maintain their own web sites. Also included on the web site are the Coordinator's Planning Manual and statistics for giving in prior campaigns. New for this year are enhanced giving opportunities. In addition to gifts by cash, check or payroll deduction, employees now can make their contributions by credit card or the donation of stock. There also are a greater variety of charities from which to choose. Environmental and animal charities have been included, so organizations like the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, the Elizabeth River Project, the SPCA and the National Wildlife Federation will be among those organizations that are new to the CVC charitable pool. The CVC is a team effort. This year, the Departments of Personnel and Training, Transportation, Game and Inland Fisheries and Virginia Tech collaborated to produce the CVC campaign video. The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts provided a children's art image from the Christian Children's Fund collection for this year's campaign poster. A new group of state employees, called "Campaign Ambassadors," will serve as campaign mentors and community liaisons. These individuals will represent the 15 state agencies with the highest levels of giving and other agencies that have demonstrated their commitment to charitable giving through the CVC. Training activities for agency coordinators will be ongoing throughout August and September, with the campaign kicking off in Richmond this fall. All state employees are invited to join in this event to celebrate another year of helping others. The campaign will run from October 1 through November 30. For assistance or answers to campaign questions, refer to the CVC's web site, at www.cvc.vipnet.org or contact Janet Brooking, at 804-225-2159.
CVC Advisory Council
Sara Redding Wilson, Chairperson Department of Personnel and Training	Anthony Moore Office of the Secretary of Natural Resources
Amy Averill Virginia Employment Commission	Donald Moseley Office of the Secretary of Administration
Deborah Barnett Department of Health Professions	Dolly Prenzel University of Virginia
Wendell Coleman Woodrow Wilson Rehabilitation Center	Meg Price Virginia Commonwealth University
Virginia Harvey House of Delegates	Connie Sorrell Virginia Department of Transportation
Fred Hodnett Supreme Court of Virginia	George Urquhart Department of Emergency Services
Edward Ianni Tidewater Community College	Charlotte Wilhelmi Northern Virginia Community College
Glenda Rooney James Madison University	Fred Williamson Office of the Secretary of Technology
John Mahone Office of the Secretary of Finance	Linda Woodard Virginia Tech
Laura McMichael Office of the Governor	Cheri Yecke Office of the Secretary of Education
Rob Merryman Central Virginia Training Center	Jack Yoest Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Resources

Stated Briefly ... Acknowledging Virginia's growing reputation as the "Silicon Dominion," owing to the burgeoning presence of technology firms who have chosen to set up shop here, the U.S. Congress has enlisted Governor Jim Gilmore to serve as chairman of a 19-member national advisory commission established to analyze the probable effects of taxation and government regulation on the future of electronic commerce conducted via the internet. The Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce recently held its first meeting in Williamsburg, drawing luminaries of top American companies and non-profit organizations, as well as federal, state and local governments, to the colonial city for two days of intensive debate and discussion. Because the internet, and the commerce it enables, crosses all geographic boundaries, trade conducted in cyberspace confounds virtually all local, state, national and international regulatory law and taxation policies. The Commission will examine various ideas for establishing a common basis for overcoming this dilemma, while advising the U.S. Congress on the likely impacts of such an arrangement on the vitality of e-commerce. The Commission also will consider the implications for individual privacy should internet purchases be taxed and regulated. The Commission will work on these issues for the next 16 months, holding additional meetings in New York City, Silicon Valley, California and Austin, Texas. …And that's not all: The U.S. Small Business Administration has bestowed the Vision 2000 Technology Award upon Governor Gilmore for exhibiting innovative leadership in creating the nation's first cabinet-level Secretariat of Technology. Under the leadership of Secretary Donald W. Upson, the new Secretariat has spurred the development and growth of small technology-based companies in Virginia. Said the Governor: "While Virginia is leading the way in the incubation of small, start-up internet and information technology firms, we are working extremely hard to keep the Commonwealth on the cutting edge of internet and information technology policy." Used any new quarters lately? If so, you've probably stashed or passed along a few coins celebrating Delaware and Pennsylvania on their flip sides. Keep collecting. By about this time next year, you'll see Virginia's coin in circulation. The quarters are being redesigned as part of the U.S. Mint's "Fifty States Commemorative Coin Program," which eventually will create a new coin for each state, producing and circulating them in the order that the states ratified the U.S. Constitution or were admitted to the Union. "America's colonial history began at Jamestown in 1607 with the establishment of America's first permanent English settlement," declared Governor Gilmore in announcing selection of a design based on Jamestown's upcoming 400th birthday. "These coins will circulate throughout the U.S. for years to come," he said, "and will stand as a symbol to all Americans that the courage and perseverance of our forefathers have granted us the freedoms we all enjoy today." Other considered designs included Mount Vernon, Colonial Williamsburg's Capitol and Jefferson's design of the State Capitol. Virginia's coin will become available in the fall of 2000.

TAKE NOTE! To reassure state employees that their final pay for 1999 will be available prior to the century date change, the previously scheduled December 31 paydate has been changed to December 29. Note: In some agencies, the holiday and payday schedule may vary from what is shown here. If you have questions, see your agency human resources officer.     December 24 - Christmas Day (observed)