More Lawmaker Study Requests and Heroes Ball Excitement Builds

July 10, 2023

“For the Children” Weekly Column by Joe Dorman, OICA CEO

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Joe Dorman, CEO – Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy

Telephone: (405) 833-1117

Email: jdorman@oica.org

OKLAHOMA CITY – Last week, I discussed those interim studies filed by state House of Representatives members for consideration over the summer and fall months. This week, I want to highlight some of those filed by state senators. 

Interim studies are requests by lawmakers to do official reviews of policies. These can be for the purpose of creating a piece of legislation submitted by a lawmaker, or a review of an existing law or program created by legislation or executive action. 

Of those requests made by senators, here are a few that involve children and families:

• IS-2023-05 by Sen. Mary Boren – Healthy Minds Initiatives.
• IS-2023-07 by Sen. Boren – Role of mentors for at-risk youth.
• IS-2023-14 by Sen. Jo Anna Dossett – Oklahoma Pre-K as a model for reform.
• IS-2023-15 by Sen. Dossett – Breastfeeding for Oklahoma foster infants. 
• IS-2023-26 by Sen. Jessica Garvin – Helping families navigate through mental health.
• IS-2023-32 by Sen. Carri Hicks – Handle with Care.
• IS- 2023-36 by Sen. Hicks – Improving maternal healthcare. 
• IS-2023-42 by Sen. Darcy Jech – DHS services.
• IS-2023-44 by Sen. Julia Kirt – Housing for all Oklahomans. 
• IS-2023-58 by Sen. Adam Pugh – Science of reading. 
• IS-2023-62 by Sen. Ally Seifried – Teacher pipeline. 
• IS-2023-69 by Sen. Kristen Thompson – Addressing virtual days in PK-12 public schools.
• IS-2023-73 by Sen. Darrell Weaver – School human trafficking education and awareness.

Of the 73 studies submitted, the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) is looking forward to working with lawmakers to see these be successful and then sharing results with you. If you would like to learn more about a specific study, please reach out to the office of the lawmaker who filed the request. 

In addition to these, many lawmakers take the initiative to hold “working groups” which are not constrained by timelines or committee boundaries and can involve a larger group of individuals committed to seeking answers to questions. 

As you can see, it will be a busy interim period for lawmakers leading up to the next session in February 2024. I also want to thank Sen. John Michael Montgomery for his service as he announced he will leave the Legislature to take over as the head of the Lawton Chamber of Commerce. OICA looks forward to continuing our work with him in his new role.

Finally, this week, we are now less than three weeks from OICA’s Seventh Annual Heroes Ball, our annual gala celebrating Oklahoma’s “Heroes for Children.” The theme of this year’s event honors the 60^th anniversary of Marvel Comics’ “X-Men.”

We will announce several awards for exceptional child advocates across the state. Our two public service awards will go to two of Oklahoma’s First Ladies. The Henry Bellmon Public Service Award will go to First Lady Cathy Keating while the Laura Boyd Public Service Award will go to First Lady Donna Nigh.

The Jay Scott Brown Individual Advocate of the Year is Jabee Williams; the Organizational Advocate of the Year is the Cherokee Nation; and the Kate Barnard Lifetime Achievement Award will go to the Potts Family.

In addition, there will be games, a superhero costume contest, prizes, and auctions on fabulous items and amazing trips – all to help OICA continue its mission to improve the quality of life of Oklahoma’s youngest residents.

To get your tickets, or for more information, go to https://oica.org/event/7th-annual-heroes-ball/. We hope to see you there!

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