OKDHS Bridge Resource Parent conferences underway

( all links open in new windows )

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Three Bridge Resource Parents "Soaring to New Heights" conferences have been scheduled in the state. The first conference was held in Tulsa on Sept. 14, 2012. Bridge Resource Parents care for children through foster care, legal guardianship and adoption.

Approximately 120 people attended the Tulsa conference, including resource parents, community partners and OKDHS staff.

Research indicates that it may take up to a year for a person who decides to become a resource parent to actually make the call to OKDHS to get the process started. One of the topics discussed at the conference was how to encourage more people to make the decision to become a foster or adoptive parent.

Many resource parents will most likely have a child placed with them who has challenging behaviors. Parents and conference presenters discussed steps to work through those difficult days and maintain the child in placement. The support network for resource parents include the OKDHS caseworker, other foster parents, churches, the Oklahoma Department of Health, family service programs, doctors and schools.

Deborah G. Smith, Director of OKDHS Child Welfare Services, provided an update on the Oklahoma Pinnacle Plan and how it may affect Bridge Resource Parents as they care for children in their homes. The Oklahoma Pinnacle Plan is the improvement plan for child welfare services.

At the end of the conference, parents were encouraged to participate in surveys in order to provide important feedback to help OKDHS improve its customer service.

Dates and locations of upcoming Bridge Resource Parent conferences:
 

• Oct. 22: Moore-Norman Technology Center, 13301 South Pennsylvania Avenue, Oklahoma City
• Oct. 26: Southeast Expo Center, 4500 West Highway 270, McAlester

Workshop registration begins at 8:30 a.m. and workshop hours are 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Lunch is provided.

To register online, visit nrcys.ou.edu/bridge-resource-family-conference or call (918) 660-3700.

If you have questions about the workshop, contact Mary Bullock at (918) 660-3724 or send her an email at mbullock@ou.edu.

Accommodations on the basis of disability are available by contacting the National Resource Center for Youth Services (NRCYS) at (800) 274-2687.

To learn more about how to become a Bridge Resource Parent, visit okbridgefamilies.com.

###