Merced County employees acting in videos for training group elicits ‘content concern’

Dozens of Merced County employees spent hours filming videos in which they are seen dancing, singing, shooting fake guns and wearing outlandish costumes for a national association with no ties to Merced.

The videos, which were produced by Human Services Agency Director Ana Pagan and her staff, were for the National Staff Development and Training Association. Pagan has served as the association’s president for the past decade.

At least five videos were created for the association, the Merced Sun-Star confirmed. Ranging from 10 minutes to 25 minutes in length, they were shown at various NSDTA conferences and trainings. Pagan, who stars in all the videos, is seen dressed in costumes while dancing and singing alongside more than 20 HSA employees.

Pagan said no county money or resources went into creating the videos, but she acknowledged they were written, produced, edited and directed by county employees, many of whom also star in them. She said the employees “volunteer” to participate in the videos, often using their personal vacation time or days off for filming.

“They come in the evening. A lot of it is volunteer,” Pagan said. “Usually we shoot them right after work, or just before work, or during lunch. Oftentimes people will take comp time or vacation time they’ve accrued.”

One video, titled “Betsy,” was shot at The Double T in Stevinson during the day. More than 15 county employees appeared as various characters in the 24-minute production. An email obtained by the Sun-Star advised county employees that filming begins at 4 p.m. Stevinson is half an hour away from the HSA office on Wardrobe Avenue in Merced. The Double T is an Old West-themed venue that hosts weddings and other events.

Tony Azevedo, owner of The Double T, said he didn’t charge the county for using his business. He said the employees were “well-rehearsed” and arrived in costumes, ready to film the video. He could not recall how many hours were spent filming.

The storyline of “Betsy” is a concern for County Executive Officer Jim Brown, who said this week it could be “offensive” to some. It features a Wild West theme with saloon girls, drinking and gun violence. Brown said he’s concerned about the video’s level of “sophistication.”

The video begins with a group of costumed county employees stealing a “prized milk cow” named Betsy and her cheese-maker owner at gunpoint. They threaten the owner to disclose his famous cheese recipe while he’s tied to a chair with a gun pointed at him. When he refuses, they threaten to kill the cow – played by another county employee – by tying it to railroad tracks.

The point of the story, which ends with a shootout resulting in the kidnappers’ deaths, is that one person shouldn’t have all the knowledge and training in any organization.

Pagan, who plays the bartender, is seen pouring shots of “chocolate milk” and shooting a rifle when a bar patron tries to leave without paying. More county employees appear in the bar, wearing corsets and feather boas.

“I do have concerns that the content could be perceived incorrectly,” Brown said. “I understand the intention and the messaging on trying to address organizational effectiveness from a training and development standpoint. However, I do have concerns with the content of the video and how it can be perceived.”

Brown said he didn’t know Pagan and her staff were making these videos. A public records request by the Sun-Star alerted him. Although Brown said it’s not uncommon for Merced County directors and staff to participate in national associations, he questioned the time and level of county resources put into the videos.

“Without knowing the specific intent, it does seem like there was a significant amount of resources spent on the videos,” he said.

The other videos – “NSDTA The Musical,” “SuperTrainer” and “Trainersville”– show Pagan and her team playing superheros and special agents while dancing and singing in their cubicles, offices and training rooms of the HSA building.

Pagan said the videos serve as a valuable training tool. She defended the county’s participation in them, saying the NSDTA has opened the door for training opportunities.

“The purpose of those videos is to show the value of training and developing your human capital,” Pagan said. “Because of the connections through NSDTA, we have been able to bring in some really top-level facilitators and trainers. We’ve gotten access to a lot of curriculum and program information.”

The videos are created using professional lighting, audio equipment, microphones and cameras.

The equipment, which Pagan said is also used for other HSA purposes such as parades and outreach events, cost taxpayers more than $100,450 since 2004. The equipment is stored in the HSA cafeteria, an employee’s office and a storage unit. The county pays $88 a month for the storage unit.

HSA officials made numerous DVD copies of the videos, costing $250, according to a Sun-Star public records request.

In response to the Sun-Star’s request, the county disclosed the costs of editing, producing and shooting the videos: $6,692.04 since 2008. More than 160 hours of staff time were spent on the videos.

Brown defended the county’s participation in national associations, but said there is “a line of reasonableness” when it comes to how much time and money the county puts into the organizations.

“I do have concerns with the level of resources that were used to produce a video of this size for a national training association,” he said. “If there was a significant amount of county resources used toward this and it wasn’t all volunteer, it’s not a practice that we will be continuing. We do need to ensure we maintain the public’s trust.”

This story was originally published April 10, 2015 at 8:49 PM with the headline "Merced County employees acting in videos for training group elicits ‘content concern’."