NACO_E-News_Header
February 24, 2012                                                          www.nacone.org   NACO E-Line Archive 

Upcoming Events

Washington, DC
March 3-7, 2012

 

Southeast District Meeting 

Camp Carol Joy Holling, Ashland

March 8, 2012

 

Central District Meeting

Quality Inn, Hastings

March 15, 2012

 

Northeast District Meeting

Lifelong Learning Center, Norfolk

March 16, 2012

 

Panhandle District Meeting

Country Club, Alliance

March 28, 2012

 

West Central District Meeting

Sandhills Convention Center, North Platte

March 29, 2012

 

The NACO Budget Workshop scheduled for Thursday, May 10, 2012 in Kearney has been canceled.

 

To view all upcoming events click here

 

 NMC_Logo

 

 

  NPAIT 

 

 

 Murphy_Tractor

 

 MIPS_Logo_Colored

 

 

 

AssocMembersAssociate and Sustaining Members

NACO Associate and Sustaining Members enable NACO to enhance its continuing education programs for county officials across the state. Visit NACO's complete associate and sustaining membership list here.

 

 EducationFoundationEducation Foundation Memorial Program

A gift to NACO's Education Foundation ensures that the children of county officials and county employees are eligible to apply for scholarships to continue their education at Nebraska's higher learning institutions. Whatever their passion - history, art, music, science, education, sports - the NACO Education Foundation will provide them an opportunity to fund their education beyond the K-12 level. Memorial gifts to NACO's Education Foundation are tax deductible and will be a lasting legacy in honor of your loved one's commitment to educating the children of Nebraska's county officials and employees. For more information about how to make a memorial gift, please contact Larry Dix  / 402-434-5660 ext. 226.

In This Issue

2012 NACO Scholarship Deadline is Near

2012 Directory of County Officials

Nebraska Crime Commission Grant Announcements

MIPS Bytes

News Across the State

News from NACo

NACo Web-based Education

Legal Calendar

County Classifieds

Associate & Sustaining Members

NACO Education Foundation Memorial Program

 

Scholarship2012 NACO Scholarship Application Deadline is Near

Nebraska High School seniors who are the children or stepchildren of county offiicals or employees are encouraged to apply for one of twelve $1,000 NACO scholarships. Additional information and the downloadable application can be found under the 'Services' tab on the NACO website. The scholarship deadline is March 1, 2012.

 

Directory2012 Directory of County Officials

The order form for the NACO 2012 Directory of County Officials is available here or on the NACO website. Each directory is $17 if tax-exempt or $18 if taxable.

 

NCCGrantsNebraska Crime Commission Grant Announcements
Deadline: April 13, 2012

Deadline: April 23, 2012

Deadline: April 26, 2012

Detailed information, instructions, and applications can be found on the Nebraska Crime Commission's Announcements & Applications webpage.

MIPSBytesMIPS Bytes 

Improving Your Email Etiquette

by: David Dobson

 

Almost everyone knows how to write a letter and we take a lot of effort to make sure our snail mail letters are well written.  Emails, on the other hands, sometimes tend to fall short in many areas.  More often than not your inbox can be full of emails with poor spelling and inadequate grammar.  Consider the impressions your emails can make on other people.  There is nothing wrong with taking a little extra time to spice up your emails to make them look professional and well thought out.  A little email etiquette can go far in the professional world.

 

There are a few things that everybody should know about sending an email.  Be sure to use the recipient fields correctly.  When sending the email to only one person, use the "to" field.  If you would like to send the same email to other people, use the "CC" field.  If you want to protect the privacy of your recipients, use the "BCC" field (blind carbon copy).

 

Try to make the subject line useful.  A good subject lines provides a summary of the email to prepare the reader quickly.  An email inbox can have many emails in it at one time, so having a good subject line helps the recipient to determine the priority of the email and prevents your email from being deleted.  Since it is the first thing seen, make sure your email subject line is error free and to the point. Try to avoid generic subject lines so that filters don't block the email.

 

When writing your email, start with a greeting or a short salutation.  Keep the email conversational and focused.  It is harder to read letters on a computer screen than on a sheet of paper, so keep your sentences short and leave a space between paragraphs.  Be sure to use proper grammar and spelling.  An email reflects on its author and an email with spelling and grammar mistakes can reflect poorly on the author.  An error-free email is easier to read and provides fewer distractions.

 

End your email politely.  Closing with "Thanks in advance for your help" can sometimes soften a harsh email and can provide you with a more favorable reply.

 

Other things to keep in mind when sending an email may include:  be aware of your attachment size (anything over 1MB can be rather large for people with a slower Internet connection), be sure you are sending the email to the correct people before clicking the send button, and be careful when using abbreviations and emoticons.  If a long response may be required, send an initial email letting the other party know that a more detailed email will follow.

 

Email has become one of the main ways to communicate in the professional world.  A little etiquette in your email can go a long way.

 

StateNewsNews Across the State

Links are to outside sources and may not be available indefinitely

 

Opponents assail Janssen's voter ID bill

Fremont Tribune News, February 22, 2012

 

Officials making progress on software problems

Fremont Tribune News, February 23, 2012

 

NACoNewsNews from NACo 

NACo_LogoNational County Government Month

 

National County Government Month, celebrated each April, provides an outstanding opportunity for you to talk proudly about programs and services that help the residents of your county.

 

The theme this year is Healthy Counties, Healthy Families.

 

To see all the resources provided by NACo to help you plan activities, click here.

 

NACo 2012 Western Interstate Region Conference

 

Santa Fe County, New Mexico is hosting NACo's 2012 Western Interstate Region (WIR) Conference, May 16-18, 2012.

 

NACo's WIR Conference focuses on public lands and other issues critical to the western region of the United States. This year's conference will feature Dr. Lowell Catlett, a regent's professor/dean and chief administrative officer at New Mexico State University's College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences. An exciting futurist, Catlett's knowledge of technologies and their implications on the way Americans live and work is addressed in his upbeat presentations.

 

For additional information about the conference and to register, click here.

 

NACoWebEdNACo Web-based Education 
Cost Effective Innovations to Improve County Employee Health Care
Thursday, March 22, 2012
1:00 PM - 2:15 PM CDT

Limited county budgets and rising health care costs are placing significant challenges on county employee health plans. This webinar will feature a range of ideas about how your county can better manage employee health care to promote wellness and potentially help lower health care costs.  Register here.

For more information on these or other upcoming or previous webinars, visit the NACo Web-based Education page.
 
Nebraska Association of County Officials
625 South 14th Street Suite 200 | Lincoln, NE 68508 | 402-434-5660
Join Our Mailing List