Council Commemorates Black History Month

Today we held a special program to commemorate Black History Month and discussed the importance of preserving African-American history and its connection to education. We have an especially rich African-American history here in Montgomery County. Today's program reminded us that we must recognize and preserve this heritage and continue to build on it to make our County a great place to live for everyone.

You can watch the event which included a video segment and a panel discussion. Panelists included Christine Clarke, former County liaison to the African-American community and resident of the Village of Jerusalem in Poolesville; Gwen Reese, founder and president of the Sugarland Ethno-History Project; and George McDaniel, Ph.D., president of McDaniel Consulting and executive director emeritus of Drayton Hall.

Happy Heart Health Month!

February is Heart Health Month. Did you know that heart disease is the leading cause of death for men and women in the United States? Every year, one in four deaths are caused by heart disease. The good news is it's preventable. Learn more about making heart-healthy choices in your life.

Congratulations to Blair High School Senior, Andrew Komo, Grand Prize Winner of the 2017 Siemen's Competition in Math, Science and Technology!

Today we presented a proclamation to a remarkable young man, Andrew Komo. He is a senior at Montgomery Blair High School and won the 2017 National Siemens Competition in an individual category, receiving a $100,000 scholarship grand prize.

The 2017 Siemens Competition winners were announced last December at George Washington University in Washington, DC, and Andrew was selected as the grand prize winner from more than 2,000 high school students.

Andrew won for his project entitled "Cryptographically Secure Proxy Bidding in Ascending Clock Auctions" for developing a coded system that can be used to protect large scale online auctions from serious threats, such as cheating and fraud, allowing these auctions to be conducted with increased transparency, fairness and security.

You can view the proclamation presentation here.

Holiday Schedule for Presidents' Day

Here's our schedule for Presidents' Day Monday, February 19, 2018:

County Offices – Closed
Libraries – Closed
County Liquor stores (DLC) – all stores will be open 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Recreation – aquatics programs and facilities open; all other classes and programs canceled. Administrative office, senior centers and community centers are closed
Montgomery Parks - Montgomery Parks - for operating schedule, including Brookside Gardens, ice rinks and tennis centers, visit www.MontgomeryParks.org
Ride On – Modified Holiday Schedule. Route information available at: www.montgomerycountymd.gov/DOT-Transit/SpecialHoliday.html
Metrorail – Information available at www.wmata.com
Metrobus – Information available at www.wmata.com
TRiPS Commuter Store at Silver Spring Transit Center – Open
TRiPS Mobile Commuter Store – Closed
Refuse/recycling pickup – no collection, all collections scheduled on or after the holiday will be made one day later in the week. Monday collections on Tuesday; Tuesday collections on Wednesday; Wednesday collections on Thursday; Thursday collections on Friday; and Friday collections on Saturday
The Shady Grove Processing Facility and Transfer Station – recycling and trash drop-off open with normal hours. Recycling Center and administrative offices closed
Parking at public garages, lots, curbside meters – Free
State offices and courts – Closed

Council Seeks Applicants for Board of Investment Trustees - Application Deadline is February 14

Apply now to serve on the Board of Investment Trustees for Employee Retirement Plans and Consolidated Retiree Health Benefits. Applications are now due by Wednesday, February 14. 

ROCKVILLE, Md., February 7, 2018—The Montgomery County Council is extending the deadline for applicants to serve as the Council representative on the Board of Investment Trustees for the Montgomery County Employee Retirement Plans and the Board of Trustees for the Consolidated Retiree Health Benefits Trust. The Boards set investment policy and evaluate and monitor investment managers and performance of the Trust Funds. The deadline for applications is 5 p.m. on Wednesday, February 14. Mr. Bradley Stelzer will complete his first term on March 1, and has indicated that he will apply for reappointment.

The appointee may not furnish or be employed by a firm that furnishes to pension funds and other institutional investors the kind of investment services purchased by the board. Members of County boards, committees and commissions may not serve on more than one such group at a time. The Council policy is that an individual must not serve more than two consecutive full terms on any County board, committee or commission.

The Board of Investment Trustees is responsible for overseeing the investment of approximately $5 billion in assets for nearly 11,000 active and retired members of the three retirement plans: defined benefit, defined contribution and deferred compensation. The Board of Trustees is responsible for overseeing the investment program for the Consolidated Retiree Health Benefits Trust, which has assets of approximately $1 billion.

The Board of Investment Trustees for the Montgomery County Employee Retirement Plans consists of 13 trustees appointed by the County Executive and confirmed by the County Council. Trustees include the directors of the Office Human Resources, Office of Management and Budget, Department of Finance and the County Council Administrator; two representatives of the County Council; one active member of the retirement plans who is not a member of a collective bargaining unit; one retired member of a County plan; two members of the public; and individuals recommended by each of the three County employee collective bargaining units.

The Board of Trustees for the Consolidated Retiree Health Benefits Trust consists of 19 trustees, 13 of whom are members of the Board of Investment Trustees, along with the following additional members: one active employee recommended by the superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), one retired member of MCPS, one MCPS bargaining unit representative, one active employee recommended by the Montgomery College (MC) president, one retired member of MC, and one MC bargaining unit representative.

Trustees serve three-year terms without compensation from any source for services rendered to the boards. The boards meet six times a year from 8:30 a.m. until approximately 1 p.m., usually on Fridays in January, March, May, July, September and November.

This Council representative position on each Board is for a person who is knowledgeable in pensions, investments or financial matters. The Council will recommend one applicant to the County Executive for appointment to serve on both boards. After the Executive appoints the Council representative, the appointee’s name is submitted to the Council for final confirmation. Within 10 days after confirmation, each trustee must sign a certificate stating that the trustee accepts the fiduciary responsibility of the trust funds and will administer the affairs of the trust with care, skill, prudence and diligence. Appointees must complete a financial disclosure statement within 15 days of Council confirmation and annually thereafter.

Letters expressing interest in the position, including a resume listing professional and civic experience, should be addressed to Council President Hans Riemer, County Council Office, 100 Maryland Avenue, Rockville, Maryland 20850. Applications can also be submitted via email to county.council@montgomerycountymd.gov. Letters of interest must be received no later than 5 p.m., Wednesday, February 14. It is the Council’s policy not to consider applications received after the deadline. Letters of application and resumes are made public as part of the appointment process, and are available for public review. The interviews are conducted in public and are televised. After the closing date, Councilmembers will review the letters of application and select applicants for interviews to be held soon thereafter.

# # #

• BoardofTrusteesApplicantsDeadlineExtension+2-7-18.doc