National Resource Center for Youth Services: Oklahoma Successful Adulthood Program

This network amplifies the voices and share the experiences of youth in the system with other young people and professionals by consulting, mentoring, and networking. It is a platform for youth in and out of care to build connections with others who have faced similar circumstances and share resources with each other.

This network advocates for youth with lived experiences in foster care and their communities to create a better future for their sisters and brothers still in care. The members learn how to educate decision makers and to work collaboratively to improve state and local child welfare systems. The youth have the chance to directly affect the lives of other youth in foster care through their advocacy.

This network builds leadership skills of current and former youth in foster care by providing them with opportunities for leadership roles that builds a greater sense of belonging and ownership over the causes that affect the lives of foster youth.

OKSA's lived experience panels allow your organization to have a facilitated conversation with OKSA alumni to support work in the areas of child welfare, social work, adoption, and more.

Do you need help with how to better engage with young people? OKSA's Youth Alumni Network can provide trainings to your organization in the areas of authentic youth engagement, relationship building and youth advisory boards.

Focus groups allow your agency to receive feedback from OKSA's Alumni Network around a topic that you would like to garner the insight of individuals with lived experience. Topics may include but are not limited to: policies and best practices, ensuring youth voice, youth advisory boards, etc.

Consultation allows the OKSA Youth Alumni Network to share their opinions and inform decision making for your programs and activities directly impacting other young people.

Are you ready to partner with OKSA’s Alumni Network? Click below to fill out a simple form and an OKSA team member will be in touch.

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Every story is unique and should be honored, guarded, and respected. Presenting With Purpose is an opportunity for you to build presentation skills while increasing professionalism at the same time.

Have you ever found yourself wanting to share about your life experiences or even in the middle of sharing and thought "I don't know that I wanted to share that with them" or "I would love to use my experiences to improve the lives of youth in care" then this training is for you! In this training you will identify ways you can use your story to make a difference, develop a strategic plan to prepare and present your story in an intentional way and practice strategic sharing and telling the group your story.

When trained in Presenting With Purpose your possibilities are endless. You can use your newfound skills to:

• Speak on panels with audiences of judges, attorneys, CASA staff, case workers, current and potential foster parents, students studying to become caseworkers, youth currently in care, legislators and the list goes on.
• Increase your professionalism and public speaking skills
• Learn to facilitate and moderate panels
• Take your story national

Follow this link and register to the training you would be interested in attending.

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