Associate District Judge To Head Oklahoma Children Programs

OKLAHOMA CAPITOL -- A retiring Canadian County associate district judge will soon become the director of Oklahoma’s child and family services programs, sources from the Oklahoma Department of Human Services announced this week.
Gary E. Miller, associate district judge, judicial district 26, will be the next director of the OKDHS Children and Family Services Division, according to Marq Youngblood, OKDHS chief operating officer. Miller’s appointment is effective March 3. Miller will be filling the position CFSD Director Linda Smith is retiring from on Feb. 29. Smith leaves OKDHS after a successful 33-year career in state service to children and families.

“We are pleased that Judge Miller is willing to take on this new challenge to serve Oklahoma’s children and families on a broader statewide mission,” said Youngblood. “He has built an outstanding reputation for serving Oklahoma children and families during the last 2 decades. He is known throughout the state for his innovative style as a family court jurist and for his exceptional community service leadership. The department will be fortunate to have his experience to guide its Children and Family Services programs to the next level.”

Miller is well known across Oklahoma for his leadership roles on committees and boards supporting the improvement of services to children and families. 

Miller was first appointed to the Canadian County judicial bench in 1993, and thereafter reelected to the position. He also served as the city attorney for the City of Yukon in 1993, until he took the bench. He was in private law practice from 1978 to 1993.

In his new CFSD role, Miller will oversee a $170 million budget and a staff of 180, who develop policy for and oversee the state’s child welfare and family services programs. The division also develops and conducts training for the more than 1,000 people who work in OKDHS Field Operations Division’s children and family services programs across Oklahoma’s 77 counties. 

Miller’s leadership role will be a vital part of service coordination between the Children and Family Services Division and a number of program divisions under the human services umbrella. Collectively, these programs work daily to improve the lives of at-risk children and families and those on the verge of being at risk.

“I am very pleased to have this opportunity at this stage in my professional career,” Miller said. “Thinking on it now, it seems to be the natural next step for me based on the judicial experience I have had during the last decade or so. I have a vision that can be realized as our state looks for ways to improve how we help families who have children at risk, but more importantly, that vision is for how do we improve upon current systems and processes to have families remain whole so that their children’s lives experience the minimum amount of risk exposure.”

OKDHS Director Howard Hendrick said, “Gary Miller is the right person to be the state’s Children and Family Services Division director. His experience will allow him to be effective day one. He knows the state’s child welfare system well and will be a great asset to the department. His experience should benefit our staff, the thousands of children and families we serve and the citizens of Oklahoma at large. We welcome him to this new role.” 

During his tenure as a Canadian County jurist, Miller spearheaded efforts to have a dedicated tax to fund children’s programs, which helped establish the Children’s Justice Center. That effort has had a positive impact on the county’s programs and services for its children and families.

Miller has served as the chairman of the Oklahoma Supreme Court Juvenile Judges Advisory Committee, on the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s Juvenile Oversight Committee, the Oklahoma Commission for Children and Youth and the Oklahoma State Post-Adjudication Advisory Review Board.

He served on the Message of Life Ministries International Board of Directors from 1995-2005 and is currently a member of the Christ Church board of directors.

Miller earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Central Oklahoma in 1975, a juris doctorate degree from Oklahoma City University School of Law in 1978 and completed the National Judicial College in 1994.

Miller was honored with the OKHDS Canadian County Adult Protective Services Award and the OKDHS Canadian County KIDS Award for outstanding services to children.

In 2000, he was named Judge of the Year by the Oklahoma Court-Appointed Special Advocates and received the Champion of Children Award from the Oklahoma Foster Families Association.

Yukon Chamber of Commerce named him the H.B. Frank Citizen of the Year in 2001.

In 2002 Miller received the Alma Wilson Leadership Award from the Office of Juvenile Affairs and the Alma Wilson Award from the Oklahoma Bar Association.

Miller and his wife, Judith, have 6 children and 12 grandchildren, of whom they are dearly proud.

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