Sometimes a Great Podcast

Oregon Department of Human Services

Catch up on this week's news from Discover and listen to interviews of staff from around the state.

  1. 3 days ago

    The Big Picture: Showing Up Where People Are

    Season 1, Episode 89 — July 1, 2026 Length: 9:23  In Discover, there are the stories that tell you what’s changing—deadlines, programs, policies—and then there are the stories that show you what the work actually looks like. This week, as we will from time-to-time, we’re going to tell you more about that work, and more importantly, the people doing it. Taken together, these stories point to something consistent: systems do not become accessible on their own. They become accessible because people move them closer, make them warmer, connect what is disconnected and keep dignity at the center. This episode also recognizes Christine Decker, whose original Discover stories make this collection possible. Her reporting, care and storytelling helped these stories be seen, and this edition of The Big Picture is possible because of her work. CreditsHost: Dr. Bethany Grace Howe, CommunicationsProduced by: Dr. Bethany Grace HoweContact: bethany.g.howe@odhs.oregon.gov

    10 min

  2. 5 days ago

    ODHS: Podly Going on the Human Frontier

    Season 1, Episode 88 — June 29, 2026 Length: 9:59 This week’s episode boldly goes where Teams meetings have gone before, with updates on in-person work expectations, inclusive hiring, workplace collaboration and a few reminders from the ODHS calendar. The episode begins with Director Liesl Wendt’s June 24 Discover message clarifying what is changing — and what is not — around in-person work guidance for managers and remote work requests for staff. From there, the episode covers an Inclusive Hiring Advocates information session, a Canopy webinar on workplace collaboration, reminders about Governor Tina Kotek’s employee town hall and ADA anniversary webinars, and a quick stop in Enterprise before Writer’s Round-Up takes the show into the final frontier. 4Minutes4U: June 24: Director Wendt’s message on in-person work guidance and remote work Deadline: ODHS: June 30: Inclusive Hiring Advocates Information Session July 8: Improving Workplace Collaboration webinar with Canopy Reminders: June 30: Governor Tina Kotek employee town hall Tuesdays in July: ADA anniversary webinar series Fact of the Week: NONE Dateline: ODHS: Nothing this week Writer’s Round-Up: Star Trek sendoff

    10 min

  3. 24 Jun

    A Return to Grant County, 62 Days, and the Stories That Keep Going

    Season 1, Episode 87 — June 24, 2026 Length: 17:36 This week, The Big Picture returns to Grant County for a follow-up conversation with Krista Qual, a family coach with ODHS and Self-Sufficiency Programs, and Kristina Krieger, a case manager with Aging and People with Disabilities. A few months ago, we visited Grant County to talk about rural service, distance, and the community resources that become essential when the next office, internet connection or source of help may be hours away. That series included the Grant County Public Library, the Monument Food Bank and the people working to make sure neighbors can still get help in places where support often depends on showing up for one another. Now, there is news to share. The library district passed, which means the Grant County Public Library remains available as a place for internet access, forms, printing, help with online systems and the everyday support that many people rely on. For Krista and Christina, that matters not only as ODHS staff, but as people who live in the community and know what losing that access would have meant. The episode also checks in on the Monument Food Bank, where construction is underway on a new building. With walls going up and insulation being added, the space is beginning to match the pride, care and commitment already present in the work. It is one more sign that in Grant County, independence and community support are not opposites. They often exist side by side. And because this is Grant County, the conversation happens during 62 Days, Canyon City’s celebration of the 1862 discovery of gold, complete with period clothing, old-west pageantry, a shootout and a hanging that was, thankfully, less permanent than advertised. In the end, the episode is about what changes after a story airs, what holds after a vote, what gets built after a need is named, and why sometimes the only way to understand a place is to come back and see it in… The Big Picture. CreditsHost: Dr. Bethany Grace Howe, CommunicationsProduced by: Dr. Bethany Grace HoweContact: bethany.g.howe@odhs.oregon.gov

    18 min

  4. 22 Jun

    ODHS and the Great Wooly Pod Gathering

    Season 1, Episode 86 — June 22, 2026 Length: 9:59 This week’s episode follows the thread through a full flock of ODHS updates, from courage and access to hiring, technology, community, preparedness, safety, belonging and remembrance. With no new 4Minutes4U this week, the episode begins in Deadline: ODHS with World Refugee Day, Inclusive Hiring Advocates and ADA anniversary webinars. From there, Dateline rounds up the new OIS self-service portal, Slavic ERG’s support for IRCO’s 50th anniversary gala, interview panel training, Cascadia planning, World Elder Abuse Day, Pride Month and Juneteenth reflections. 4Minutes4U:Nothing this week Deadline: ODHS: 2:30 June 23: World Refugee Day celebration June 30: Inclusive Hiring Advocates Information Session July 7 and Tuesdays through July: ADA anniversary webinars Fact of the Week:NONE Dateline: ODHS: (4:12) OIS self-service portal launched June 15 Slavic ERG supported IRCO’s 50th anniversary gala Interview panel training required in Workday Cascadia planning for coastal response World Elder Abuse Day Pride Month message Juneteenth message and reflection Writer’s Round-Up: Eastward Ho! ( 8:15)

    10 min

  5. 17 Jun

    SAGPodcast: Coos Bay, Family Ties, and the Work That Comes Home

    Season 1, Episode 85, June 17, 2026Length: 26:29 This week, The Big Picture comes from Mingus Park in Coos Bay, where we sit down with Shara Arnejo, a public benefits specialist with the Virtual Eligibility Center, and Dylan Bessey, a rotational supervisor with the Oregon Eligibility Partnership in North Bend, to talk about eligibility work, staff support and the family connection that gives this conversation an unusual twist. Shara and Dylan work in related parts of ODHS, but they are also mother and son. That means this episode covers public benefits, office transitions, promotions, acronyms and the very specific experience of finding out your child has moved into a new ODHS role while still living in the same house. The conversation looks at how both of them found their way into state service, how eligibility work has changed through major system transitions, and what it means to understand the same complicated work from different roles. Along the way, they talk about SNAP, quality control, public scrutiny, training, staff stress and the pressure of getting decisions right when people’s lives are directly affected. They also talk about what it means to have someone at home who actually understands the work. Some days that means decompressing with someone who knows the acronyms. Other days it means not talking about work at all, and turning instead to board games, video games, card games and the self-care that helps people keep showing up. In the end, the conversation is about more than one family or one office. It is about service, accountability, perspective and the people who support each other through complicated work. From North Bend to Coos Bay, and from salt air to family history, it is a reminder that home, community and public service are all part of seeing the whole picture in… The Big Picture. CreditsHost: Dr. Bethany Grace Howe, CommunicationsProduced by: Dr. Bethany Grace HoweContact: bethany.g.howe@odhs.oregon.gov

    26 min

  6. 15 Jun

    ODHS and the Podcast of Very Specific Things

    Season 1, Episode 84 — June 15, 2026 Length: 9:57 This week’s episode enters the Chamber of Very Specific Things, where every update has a label, a purpose and at least one instruction staff may want to read twice. The episode begins with Governor Tina Kotek’s June 30 employee town hall, including how staff can participate, submit questions and find the recording afterward. From there, the episode covers federal Medicaid work rules, updated records retention guidance, resiliency training, conference room equipment changes, GenAI learning, a new transcription service and a remembrance shared with care. 4Minutes4U: (1:43) June 30: Governor Tina Kotek employee town hall Deadline: ODHS: (3:18) Nothing new this week Reminders: July 17: nominations for the Estella Namaho Nata’ani Award Fact of the Week: (3:59) OHA continues working with CMS for clarity on upcoming federal Medicaid work rules that begin taking effect in January 2027.  Dateline: ODHS: (5:52) APD updated special records retention schedule Community Resilience Model training Smart conference room systems support ending Sept. 1 GenAI Module 2: From Learning to Practice Voice-to-text transcription service Pulse nightclub remembrance Writer’s Round-Up: “The Most ODHS Person in the World”: Part II (9:16)

    10 min

  7. 10 Jun

    SAGPodcast: A Business Analyst in Astoria: Old Buildings and New Problems

    Season 1, Episode 83: June 10, 2026 Length: 24:51 This week, The Big Picture is in Astoria, where we sit down with Tracy Sahlberg, business analyst - and expert - for District 1. We’re talking about the work behind ODHS’ move into a new building downtown and what it takes to turn an old, empty shell into a place that can actually serve people well. The conversation begins with the building itself: a century-old Astoria space with exposed brick, unexpected footings, changing stairways, old police and fire station history, possible movie-location lore, and enough dark corners to make any communications professional immediately grateful they are only visiting. But beneath the charm and construction dust is a much bigger question about how ODHS designs spaces for the people who will use them every day. Traci talks about human-centered design as a practice of humility: recognizing that the best answers come from the staff and customers who will use the space every day. That means listening closely to needs around privacy, light, storage, safety, accessibility, customer flow, wellness spaces, children’s areas, lactation rooms, warm handoffs and the many small details that determine whether a building actually works. The episode also looks at what happens when good plans meet an old building. In a structure more than 100 years old, surprises are part of the process, and the work becomes about communicating clearly, going back to staff, rethinking the flow and finding the best possible solution within the limits of the space, budget and building. In the end, the conversation is about designing public spaces around people—the staff who serve, the communities who come through the door, and the care it takes to see the whole picture in… The Big Picture. CreditsHost: Dr. Bethany Grace Howe, CommunicationsProduced by: Dr. Bethany Grace HoweContact: bethany.g.howe@odhs.oregon.gov

    25 min

  8. 8 Jun

    The Pods Are Alive with the Sound of Updates

    Season 1, Episode 82 — June 8, 2026 Length: 9:58 This week’s episode climbs through a lighter set of ODHS updates, with agency progress, health coverage changes, summer wellbeing resources and mindful pauses all finding their place in the chorus. The episode begins with Director Liesl Wendt’s June 3 Discover message on ODHS’ first 100 days, including progress on child welfare overdue assessments, OEP staff tools, office signage, and work moving forward across TADVS, VR, ODDS and in-home services. From there, the episode looks ahead to new federal Medicaid rules starting in January 2027, plus new Mindful Minutes resources and the June OHSE Spotlight newsletter, because sometimes the most important update is the one that reminds your shoulders they do not need to live near your ears. 4Minutes4U: A message from Director Wendt: Her first 100 days Deadline: ODHS: Nothing new this week Reminders: July 17: 2027 nominations for the Estella Namaho Nata’ani Award Fact of the Week: Some adults applying for or renewing OHP, Medicaid or Healthier Oregon may need to show more proof of need under new federal Medicaid rules. Dateline: ODHS: Mindful Minutes: Anchor Touch and listening closely to a song June OHSE Spotlight newsletter Writer’s Round-Up: “Maria Has Entered the SharePoint”

    10 min
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About

Catch up on this week's news from Discover and listen to interviews of staff from around the state.

Information

  • Creator
    Oregon Department of Human Services
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    106
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Oregon Department of Human Services
  • Show Website
    Sometimes a Great Podcast