Three groups were presented with the first Vision in Action Awards for their exemplary efforts to partner with members of the community to accomplish the goals of the Countywide Vision.

The Vision in Action awards were presented to the groups on June 20 by San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors Chair Janice Rutherford during the San Bernardino Associated Governments (SANBAG) General Assembly.

“The Countywide Vision is more than just a statement of what we want our County’s future to be; it’s a challenge to all of our community partners to develop innovative and bold new approaches to make that future possible,” Rutherford said. “I applaud all of our award winners for their creativity and hard work, and I encourage all of our stakeholders to continue working to achieve our shared Vision for the County of San Bernardino.”

The Board of Supervisors and SANBAG have established two regional goals toward achievement of the Countywide Vision: Partner with all sectors of the community to support the success of every child from cradle to career; and establish San Bernardino County as a model in the state where local government, regulatory agencies and communities are truly business-friendly.

The following are the recipients of the first Vision in Action Awards:

• Colton Joint Unified School District – “Purposeful Community Initiative”

This award recognized progress toward achievement of the cradle-to-career regional goal. The district created partnerships with local businesses and community groups to provide internship opportunities for students. As part of their duties, students from the Virtual Enterprise Program at Bloomington High School created a website for Leno’s Ricos Tacos and gained valuable experience in web design, graphic arts and public presentations while providing a website for a local business. Arrowhead Regional Medical Center also got involved in the Purposeful Community Initiative by adopting three elementary schools in the Colton Joint Unified School District to educate them about the careers available in the health care field.

Accepting the award were Colton Unified School District School Board President Roger Kowalski, School Board Member Patt Haro, Superintendent Jerry Almendarez, Assistant Superintendent Mike Snelling, Leno Moreno from Leno’s Rico Tacos, Bloomington High School-Virtual Enterprise Instructor Elena Hernandez, and Jorge Valencia from Arrowhead Regional Medical Center.

• City of Chino – “Jump Start Meeting”

This award recognized progress toward achievement of the business-friendly regional goal. The City of Chino created a “Jump Start Meeting” process to help businesses through the development process. The informal meeting brings together all departments involved in the development process and helps identify any potential problems with a business before they spend money on a formal application. The meetings have led to more complete development applications, a more efficient process and business able to open quickly at a lower cost.

Accepting the award was City of Chino Business Development Manager Cruz Esparza.

• Cities of Adelanto, Barstow, Hesperia, Victorville and the Town of Apple Valley – “Opportunity High Desert”

This award recognized the importance of collaboration. City managers from Adelanto, Barstow, Hesperia, Victorville and Apple Valley joined to discuss how they could bolster economic development in the High Desert. They realized that any major development in the region benefits all of them because of increased employment and impacts on the regional economy. The cities decided to market the region together at the International Council of Shopping Centers Conference in an effort to bring new business to the area.

Accepting the award were city managers Jim Hart from Adelanto, Curt Mitchell from Barstow, Mike Podegracz from Hesperia, Doug Robertson from Victorville, and Apple Valley Town Manager Frank Robinson.

For more information about the Countywide Vision, visit www.sbcounty.gov/vision.