For Release:  March 27, 2012 - Pamela Williams, Office of Communications- (405)271-5601

Mini Conference on Child Abuse Prevention Emphasizes Community Involvement

You can make a positive difference in a child’s life!  To learn how, attend the “Community Engagement /Community Building” Child Abuse Prevention (CAP) mini conference on Tuesday, April 3, from 12:45 p.m. to 4:45 p.m. at the Sheraton Oklahoma City Hotel and Conference Center, 1 North Broadway Ave. in Oklahoma City.

The CAP Day mini conference is an afternoon event that immediately follows morning events on April 3 for Child Abuse Prevention Day at the State Capitol. This mini conference is free and open to the public. Organizations, communities and individuals are welcome to attend to share information and learn how to get involved to help prevent child abuse and neglect.

“We want to encourage anyone to attend who is interested in child abuse prevention and  wants to make a positive difference in a child’s life,” said Annette Jacobi, chief, Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) Family Support & Prevention Service.

The agenda for the CAP Day Mini Conference follows:

1:00 p.m.       Welcome Address

                        Annette Jacobi, Chief, OSDH Family Support & Prevention Service

Keynote

“What Makes People Care? How Does Knowing the Answer, Impact Our Work?”

Pat Stanislaski, Director of Partnering for Prevention (a NJ consulting firm)

2:15 p.m.       Choose from five workshops (45 minutes each):

How Communities Can Utilize People Who Care

Pat Stanislaski, Director of Partnering for Prevention, New Jersey

Poverty and the State Budget

David Blatt, Director, Oklahoma Policy Institute

Culture, Communities & Children

Dr. Paul Spicer, Professor, University of Oklahoma

Conducting Community Cafés

Grace Kelley, OSDH Family Support & Prevention Service

The Front Porch Project and Other “Takin’ It to the Streets” Programs

Kathleen Benfield, Steve Hahn, Jacque Gallegos, Karen Harvey

The Parent-Child Center of Tulsa

3:15 p.m.       Choose from five workshops (45 minutes each):

Dancing the Rhythm of Community Engagement

Byron Jackson, Possibilities Inc.

Nonprofit Marketing

Stacy Hawthorne, Center for Children and Families, Inc.

Jessa Olson, Parents Assistance Center

Building Resiliency in Military Families

Dr. Teresa Baird and Wendy Nix

Oklahoma National Guard Family Program Office

The Basics of Reporting Child Abuse

 Kelli Litsch, Oklahoma Department of Human Services

PANEL: What Oklahoma Is Doing – Growing Community!

Sundra Flansburg, VOICE Education Fund

Rev. Lance Schmitz, Capitol Hill Church of the Nazarene

Kristen Vails, Plaza District

Georgie Rasco, Neighborhood Alliance, Inc.

4:15 p.m.       Closing

                        “How to Change the World”

                        Dr. Deb Shropshire, Pediatrician and Foster Care Champion

Advanced registration is due April 2 and can be done online by following this link: 

http://www.ok.gov/triton/modules/calendar/calendar.php?calendar_seq=32. Registration will also be accepted at the door but space is limited.

For general questions about Child Abuse Prevention Day activities at the State Capitol on April 3 and the mini-conference that afternoon, call Sherie Trice, OSDH Family Support & Prevention Service at (405) 271-7611.

 

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