Welcome to Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services

September 2025 Regular Commission Meeting

Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services
State Office
Landmark Towers, 3535 NW 58th Street, 2nd Floor Conference Room
Oklahoma City, OK 73112

Wednesday, September 10, 2025 - 10:30 a.m.

Video Conference Link
Phone: 1-669-254-5252
Webinar ID: 161 611 2814

September 2025 Comission Agenda and Packet

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Accessible Instructional Materials Center offers free school supplies for students with disabilities

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Accessible Instructional Materials Center is working to ensure that print-disabled students across Oklahoma have what they need to succeed in their classrooms as they return to school this fall.

The AIM Center, which is part of the Oklahoma Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, provides free specialized school supplies for students who are blind, have visual impairments, have certain physical handicaps or have reading disabilities.

DRS offers new employment training program for blind/visually impaired Oklahomans

OKLAHOMA CITY —A new program designed to help clients who are visually impaired find employment kicks off this fall. It’s called Employment VIBE and is part of the Visually Impaired and Blindness Empowerment program or VIBE. The program is offered by the Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services.

“This program is for clients ages 18 and up,” said Cheryl Snow, programs manager in DRS’ division of Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired. “We will kick start Employment VIBE in the fall, and it’s specifically for clients who have already learned adaptive skills and are ready for employment.”

DeafBlind Awareness Day

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired and friends will celebrate DeafBlind Awareness week June 22 – June 28 in honor of Oklahomans who are DeafBlind and world-famous author, educator, lecturer and disability advocate Helen Keller.

DRS’ SBVI staff will hold the 2025 DeafBlind Awareness Day from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on June 30 at Metro Tech, 1900 Springlake Drive in Oklahoma City. The event’s program will include the reading of a proclamation from Gov. Kevin Stitt honoring DeafBlind Awareness Week.

Decision opens doors to DRS services for clients previously on waiting list

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahomans with disabilities who had been on a waiting list to receive services will soon be contacted by Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services staff to start their journey to joining the state’s workforce.

Each month, DRS’ Performance Review Committee looks over consumer services activity reports and determines if agency and vendor resources are adequate to service additional clients who are on the Priority Group 3 waiting list. In May, committee members agreed clients could be served who were on the waiting list as of the day of the decision.

Seven seniors to graduate from OSD on May 21

SULPHUR — Seven seniors will graduate May 21 from the Oklahoma School for the Deaf during a commencement ceremony at 1 p.m. in the Ken Brown Gymnasium.

OSD is located at 1100 East Oklahoma Ave. in Sulphur.

DeafBlind Awareness Day

Decision opens doors to DRS services for clients previously on waiting list

Seven seniors to graduate from OSD on May 21

SULPHUR — Seven seniors will graduate May 21 from the Oklahoma School for the Deaf during a commencement ceremony at 1 p.m. in the Ken Brown Gymnasium.

OSD is located at 1100 East Oklahoma Ave. in Sulphur.

Oklahoma School for the Blind students to graduate on May 15

MUSKOGEE – Twelve students will graduate May 15 from the Oklahoma School for the Blind during a commencement ceremony at 1:30 p.m. in the school’s auditorium.

OSB is located at 3300 Gibson Street in Muskogee.

12 honored at 31st annual People with Disabilities Awareness Day

OKLAHOMA CITY - Jody Harlan, former communications director for the Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services, was honored March 11 with the 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award during the 31st annual People with Disabilities Awareness Day in Oklahoma City.

The Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services hosted the event that was held at the Oklahoma History Center and brought together hundreds of people with disabilities, their families and their supporters.

Harlan served as the communications director for the Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services and was a tireless champion for Oklahomans with disabilities. Through the years, her work told the stories of thousands of DRS clients who were achieving their dreams of building a career and living independently.

2025 Oklahoma Regional Braille Challenge

Oklahoma student wins regional Braille Challenge medals at Oklahoma School for Blind

MUSKOGEE –– Forty-five Oklahoma students competed at OSB for medals and prizes in the annual academic competition sponsored by Braille Institute of America in the United States and Canada.

“Reading is core to any person’s education,” Faye Miller, Oklahoma School for the Blind’s Orientation and Mobility Specialist and event coordinator, said. “For students who are blind it’s no different, Braille just happens to be their method to literacy. A good foundation in braille gives the students skills to proper grammar and spelling.”

Five people pose for a photo holding 150,000 big check.

OK School for the Deaf’s Senior Citizens’ Hearing Aid Program gets needed boost thanks to a Masonic Charity Foundation grant

EDMOND – The Masonic Charity Foundation of Oklahoma awarded the Oklahoma School for the Deaf’s Senior Citizen Hearing Aid Program $150,000 grant for 2025.

Many Oklahoma seniors live on fixed incomes and without this assistance are unable to get hearing support or specialized equipment designed to alert those who are hard of hearing or deaf.

“Thanks to this generous grant, we will be able to serve more than 400 clients this year,” OSD Superintendent Heather Laine said. “Clients will not only benefit from hearing aids, but they could receive other specialized technology.”

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Two new leadership team members join the Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services

OKLAHOMA CITY — The Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services welcomes two new staff members to its leadership team.

“I am happy to announce Brent Pearce as the new Superintendent of the Oklahoma School for the Blind,” said DRS Executive Director Melinda Fruendt. “Brent brings more than two decades of experience in education and administration to this role, including his recent tenure as Interim Superintendent and High School Principal at OSB. His leadership journey has also included roles as assistant superintendent, junior high and high school principal and Athletic Director at Porum Public Schools.

Three-Peat! Oklahoma School for the Deaf GPSD Football Champions

SULPHUR, Okla.- Oklahoma School for the Deaf won the Great Plains Schools for the Deaf football championship for the third year in a row.

“This incredible achievement is a testament to the hard work, determination, and talent of our athletes,” OSD Superintendent Heather Laine said.

OSD’s football team plays eight-man football and competes against schools for the deaf from other states and public-school districts in this state.

“A huge shoutout to our 1st-year head coach, Sean Thomas Sledd and his coaching team for leading the team to success and continuing this winning journey. Your leadership and dedication have made all the difference,” Laine said.

Read more about OSD's football champions

Three young girls with Cane Quest tee shirts and metals around their necks, smile big for the camera.

12th Annual Oklahoma Regional Cane Quest to be held Nov. 6

MUSKOGEE -- Oklahoma School for the Blind will be hosting its 12^th annual Oklahoma Region Cane Quest with 43 eager students who are blind or visually impaired ready to prove their white cane proficiency. This competition will begin at noon on Nov. 6 at the school.

Contestants, with white canes as their guides, will identify obstacles and changes in surfaces, such as drop-offs at stairs or curbs, in a quest for medals and prizes.

White Cane Safety Awareness Day 2024

TULSA – White cane users with visual disabilities and sighted supporters will celebrate National White Cane Safety Awareness Day from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Oct. 15 with a walk through the heart of downtown Tulsa.

Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired, a division of the Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services, will host this year’s event. SBVI staff invites participants to gather in Williams Green Park, 61 E 3rd St, in downtown Tulsa.

Read more about White Cane Day on Oct. 15

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