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Right on Target
The Oklahoma Partnership for School Readiness (OPSR) is crossing deadlines off their list as August comes to a close. Throughout this newsletter, you'll find everything you need to know about OPSR from staff additions to grant updates to our latest milestones.
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OKFutures: Needs Assessment & Strategic Plan
OPSR is on track to submit the final draft of the needs assessment to the Administration for Children and Families by their target deadline of Aug. 29. Over 33 sources have been incorporated into the document, and OPSR partners have been key in providing data and collaborating. In order to ensure we have created the most comprehensive and aligned needs assessment, OPSR held multiple work group sessions across two weeks. This gave an opportunity for stakeholders across various organizations to submit feedback.
OPSR is now working to complete a sustainable five-year strategic plan for an equitable and sustainable system to improve developmental and academic outcomes for children in Oklahoma, especially those most vulnerable and underserved. The OKFutures Steering Committee, Quality Improvement, Professional Development, and Family and Community Engagement Teams are hosting interactive sessions in order to gather input to inform the plan. Additionally, the document will be reviewed by our OPSR Board, Evaluation Team, and E-LEaD Team, a group charged with maintaining an equity focus.
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ECIDS Takes Next Steps
State agency leaders met on Aug. 26 to receive an outline of recommendations for building an Early Childhood Integrated Data System (ECIDS) in Oklahoma. After interviews with state departments, 3SI and Foresight Policy + Law created a plan to guide policy makers in next steps for managing, integrating and protecting data. This meeting provided the opportunity for state agencies to agree upon the exciting next steps of the process.
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Hopeful Futures
As part of our work on our health equity grant, Project HOPE, we have partnered with the Center for Public Partnerships and Research of the University of Kansas to collaborate on a new story gathering technique called Sensemaker. Sensemaker gives community members, both families and providers, the opportunity to share and reflect on their lived experiences. OPSR will be able to examine the stories and patterns in-depth, allowing us to gain a new understanding of what families need to thrive.
After developing our Sensemaker framework, titled Hopeful Futures, we began testing the tool this month at the OKC Indian Clinic. The information that we've gathered thus far will be vital to our work moving forward and we are very thankful for our partners, Dr. Janice Hixson and Monica McKee of the OKC Indian Clinic.
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Save the Date!
OKFutures Moving Forward: 2019 Professional Development Conference
Saturday, Nov. 2
Ada, Durant, Enid, Lawton, Norman, Tahlequah, Thackerville, Tulsa & Wyandotte
Registration will open Sunday, Sept. 1 on the OPSR website for our professional development conference. This conference will help early childhood providers and workers, teachers, and parents develop skills to manage behaviors and interactions, as well as cover topics such as brain development and trauma informed care.
For more information, email contact@okschoolreadiness.org.
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OPSR's Mission Shared
Executive Director, Debra Andersen, spoke at the Westminster Women's Mission Service Projects Luncheon Series on Aug. 14. Debra shared OPSR's vision that all Oklahoma children are safe, healthy, eager to learn and ready to succeed by the time they enter school. OPSR was fortunate to receive a generous donation, in the form of small children's toys, that can be used for the Hopeful Futures story gathering project.
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