Waypoint Podcast Episode 5: OKDHS and Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma help families engaged with the child welfare system navigate legal issues
Waypoint PodcastShow Notes
In our fifth episode, we are speaking with attorneys Michael Figgins and Ron Baze about OKDHS’ family representation contract with Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma.
Michael Figgins has spent 33 years in practice as an attorney providing legal services to vulnerable populations, and has been the Executive Director of Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma since March, 2012. In this role, he is responsible for developing staff, program and community resources.
Ron Baze has been practicing law for over 20 years and serves as the OKDHS General Counsel, supervising all day to day activities within the OKDHS Legal Division. This division’s primary mission is to serve as in-house counsel and legal representation for Oklahoma’s largest state agency.
The family representation contract helps individuals engaged with the child welfare system by providing support with legal matters that ultimately affect the safety of children. This contract helps families navigate difficult legal circumstances with the goal of safely preventing the need for children to come into state custody, or, if they are already in custody, help families work through any legal issues to reunify more quickly.
We hope you’ll continue to join us on this podcast where we’ll explore topics that affect and uplift Oklahomans. Don't forget to like this episode and subscribe, so you'll know when each new episode drops! If you’d like to learn more about Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma, or to access services, visit legalaidok.org. To raise your hand to suggest even more ways we can work “upstream” to support preventative services for Oklahomans, visit ourOKDHS.org.
More from Waypoint Podcast
Welcome back to Waypoint, an Oklahoma Human Services podcast intended to help you chart your course, by informing, educating and enhancing collaboration in service to Oklahomans.
In our tenth episode, we’re talking with Adult and Family Services employees, Cari Crittenden and Amber Margarit, about SNAP Education and Training (SNAP E&T) or “OK SNAP Works,” farmer’s markets programs and SNAP as a whole. These programs are critical pieces of the social safety net and help families lift themselves out of poverty. This discussion will teach us the basics of OK SNAP Works and the SNAP program as a whole, including how to apply for or access services. We’ll also talk about how SNAP customers can get more out of their SNAP dollar through the Double-Up Oklahoma program by using their benefits at participating farmer’s markets, grocers or mobile markets.
In our ninth episode, we’re talking with OKDHS Child Care Director, Brittany Lee to learn about the importance of early childhood education through quality, licensed child care. Through this discussion, we learn how Child Care Services focuses on safety and quality for every child and the critical part child care programs play in the lives of Oklahoma’s children and families. Brittany also discusses some exciting initiatives coming later this year for child care programs across the state!
In our eighth episode, we learn about the Child Welfare Nursing program through a conversation with registered nurses and foster and adoptive mothers, Susan Oliver and Shelly Lee. This program supports child welfare workers by giving insight into complex medical conditions throughout the investigatory process to help staff make the best safety decisions possible. Nurses also support both biological and foster families with training and education related to the medical needs of children, increasing family stability and better long-term outcomes for the children involved.
In our seventh episode, we continue our conversation with Dr. Deborah Shropshire, OKDHS’ Child Welfare Services (CWS) Director, and Patrick Klein, who retired as the OKDHS Adult and Family Services (AFS) Director after 31 years with OKDHS.