Member receives Department of Public Safety Employee of the Year Award

Longtime MAPE member Danielle Kitto, Local 502, received the Department of Public Safety (DPS) 2022 Employee of the Year award. Kitto has been a member for 26 years and is a claims manager for the Crime Victims Reparations Board in the Office of Justice Programs.

When asked what this honor meant to her, Kitto said “I am extremely honored to receive this award and humbled by the kind words expressed by my colleagues in their nomination.

“I feel privileged to be surrounded by a dedicated and compassionate team who are committed to helping victims of crime with their financial losses and put them on the path to healing.”

Kitto was nominated by multiple colleagues for this honor.

One colleague nominated her saying, “Danielle Kitto continues to amaze with her commitment to working the extra hours and going the extra miles to ensure that the Minnesota Crime Victims Reparations Program is in the best shape possible to serve victims of violent crime in Minnesota. Over the last year (and the two years before that), this has meant playing a leading role as the program strives to continually improve by implementing a new paperless claims management system and securing federal grant funds for assessment and modernization.”

Another colleague added, “Danielle has led the effort over the last year to transition our Reparations Claim form from paper to online and help train the thousands of advocates and professionals across the state on how to use the Victim Service Portal.  This portal is critical, as it will broaden accessibility for those applying for benefits to the Crime Victim Reparations Board. Despite an already full workload, Danielle has taken on this charge and so many others while balancing a multitude of other tasks.”

Kitto was presented the award at a December 2022 award ceremony held at DPS.