- Donna Davis of Youth and Family Services in El Reno recently received the Outstanding Community Partner/Agency Award from the Oklahoma Career and Technical Education Equity Council. Pictured are, from left, Bryce Fair, OSRHE associate vice chancellor for scholarships and grants; Becki Foster, Oklahoma CareerTech chief of staff; Davis; and Patrick Klein, Oklahoma DHS chief officer and division director of adult and family services.
She was one of 14 Oklahomans honored, along with four businesses and organizations, at the 26th annual Making It Work Day at the Capitol on Feb. 13. Making It Work Day recognizes individuals who are committed to removing barriers to success for single-parent families by providing educational experiences for students beyond the classroom. The presentations were made at a ceremony at the Oklahoma History Center. The ceremony also recognized nontraditional students.
Through the Emergency Solutions Grant program at Youth and Family Services, Davis has helped single parents in the Redlands Community College GOALS Program -- along with other low-income and homeless individuals in Canadian County -- receive emergency housing assistance, said Julie Lamb, GOALS Program director, who nominated her for the award.
Davis also works with other county partners to help students pay utility deposits and get other necessities, like clothing, school supplies, toiletries and beds for their children, Lamb said.
“Donna even worked with area churches to pay an old out-of-state tuition bill so a single mother could continue her education at Redlands,” Lamb said. “If it were not for Donna Davis and the services she provides through Youth and Family Services, many of our students would not be able to succeed in completing a college degree.”
OkCTEEC is affiliated with the administrative division of the Oklahoma Association of Career and Technology Education. The council advocates for students pursuing nontraditional careers and for resources for educating single parents.
“The mission of OkCTEEC is to increase the awareness of collegiate and technical education by focusing on high expectations and full participation for all students and employees in career and education in Oklahoma. The Making It Work Day Ceremony is held to recognize those individuals, programs and business partners that have worked so hard throughout the year as well as bring a direct awareness to state senators and legislators,” said KayTee Niquette, Work Prep and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families coordinator at the Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education.
She serves as an adviser for OkCTEEC, along with Lisa French of the Department of Human Services and Gina McPherson of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education.
“Making it Work Day is our annual opportunity to spotlight the investment and hard work that is being done to empower our students who are single parents and most often first generation students who dream and want to pursue higher education,” said Lisa D. Brown, OkCTEEC president and director for career transitions at Oklahoma City Community College. “We encourage them to aspire to set goals as never before, take the steps to achieve those goals and then gain the confidence and success of completing those goals.
“Making it Work Day is their red carpet moment to celebrate these successes and to show and not just tell Oklahoma that this program and its funding is well spent and valuable to the lives of these individuals, not for that moment but for a lifetime. I often relate what we do to the story of the butterfly that finally leaves the cocoon being transformed as confident, beautiful, strong and free to soar.”
OkCTEEC’s purposes include promoting and supporting career and technology education, increasing its effectiveness, promoting research in the field and in educational equity, developing leadership and advocating for equity and diversity.
For more information about OkCTEEC, visit okcteec.org. For more information about the Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education, visit www.okcareertech.org.
