Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and Mayor Rahm Emanuel today announced a new collaboration between the City of Chicago and Cook County, in which the two governments will work together to merge, reform and revitalize workforce development and job creation efforts throughout Chicagoland. “This new approach to workforce development will allow our companies to find and train employees to fit the jobs of the 21st century,” said President Preckwinkle.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle attended a ribbon cutting in Summit, Ill. for the grand opening of a Senior Housing Development made possible in part by a $2.7 million HOME Investment Partnership Program loan (HOME). “With the economy struggling right now, I am proud that Cook County is able to help residents when we can by providing loans to important projects like this one,” said Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle.

Joined by Mayor Peloquin of Blue Island who hosted the Harvest Festival, President Preckwinkle spoke to a large crowd assembled at the Tommie Brown Sports Association in Blue Island, to kick-off the creation of the Cook County Urban Agricultural Network. Both President Preckwinkle and Mayor Peloquin urged those in attendance to learn about urban agriculture, as well as the community building and health benefits which come from such networking.

The results of public voting will be announced at an A4MC Awards Ceremony on Monday October 17th at 3:00 pm at the Hyatt Innovation Center 71 S. Wacker (6th floor). Prizes will be given out to the top ten winning apps of A4MC’s Community Round. The announcement will be preceded by a Crime Data Hack Salon featuring expert speakers discussing the implications of the City of Chicago’s unprecedented release of ten years of city crime data! Public voting on the ten finalists for the Community Round was kicked off last week on Friday October 7th.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle announced today the list of community groups that Cook County Works (CCW) is partnering with by providing more than $15 million.

The Department of Environmental Control helped IIT mark another milestone in the university’s efforts to reduce the amount of trash leaving campus with a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new campus composter on Friday, September 30. Through a partnership which included efforts by student groups, a university-sponsored IPRO, the Wanger Institute for Sustainable Energy Research (WISER), and the Office of Campus Energy and Sustainability, the on-site composting operation will significantly reduce the amount of food waste going from campus to landfills.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and Forest Preserve District General Superintendent Arnold Randall released the findings of a comprehensive desk audit today which was performed to assess the Forest Preserve District’s overall effectiveness. President Preckwinkle ordered the desk audit to fulfill her commitment to transparency, accountability, and improved services to the residents and taxpayers of Cook County.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle hosted business leaders throughout Cook County to discuss her ongoing dedication to additional opportunities for M/WBE participation, and the County’s efforts to work with private sector partners to increase access to capital and support services for emerging companies. “I have always said that I believe that the partners that we do business with here at the County should reflect the rich diversity of our residents,” said Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle.

Continuing her ongoing commitment to fiscal responsibility, transparency and accountability, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle today released the STAR (Set Targets, Achieve Results) Performance Management Report for the 3rd Quarter of Fiscal Year 2011. The report reflects the efforts of Preckwinkle’s administration to strengthen the process of performance management by tracking more data throughout the County and building better, more accurate measurements of that data. The newest report adds more than 30 new measurements and almost 100 new data points.

In March 2011, County President Toni Preckwinkle and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel asked a committee of civic leaders to explore collaboration opportunities for Cook County and the City of Chicago. The Joint Committee on City-County Collaboration was tasked with identifying ways the City of Chicago and Cook County could reduce costs, streamline services, and improve residents’ interactions with the City and County. In June 2011, the Committee issued a report outlining 19 areas where the City and County should work together.