Tulsa World: Research center aims to help social agencies

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Research center aims to help social agencies

Courtney Burress (left) of the National Resource Center for Youth Services; Howard Hendrick, director of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services; Kate Neary-Pounds of H.O.P.E., and Tayrin Saldivar of the Mental Health Association take part in a roundtable discussion for the pre-launch of the Center for Family Risk and Resilience at Oklahoma State University-Tulsa. JAMES GIBBARD / Tulsa World

By SHANNON MUCHMORE World Staff Writer
Published: 5/26/2009 2:19 AM
Last Modified: 5/26/2009 4:21 AM

Oklahoma State University-Tulsa has begun developing a center to combine research on at-risk families with social service agencies looking to assist those in need.

Agency representatives and university officials met recently for a pre-launch of the Center for Family Risk and Resilience, and about 100 representatives attended.

Ron Cox, the director of the center and a professor of family science, said part of the center's aim is to help service agencies use up-to-date information about how best to reach families and individuals in trouble, as well as which treatment methods are most effective.

About 20 percent of agencies use these evidence-based practices, and it can take years for relevant research to get to them, Cox said.

The center would allow researchers to work more directly with the community, he said.

"It's kind of getting rid of that ivory tower perception," he said.

Judy Gann, the executive director of New Hope, which works with children of incarcerated parents, said she was eager to begin working with the university.

"I think it's going to be a great partnership," she said.

The pre-launch discussion was filled with energetic comments and ideas, and nonprofit organizations can benefit greatly from working with OSU-Tulsa and receiving research results, she said.

"It's that piece that we just don't have time to do, but we know it's important," she said.

Cox said the center is in its beginning stages, but it will begin its work this fall. He hopes to have recruited experienced researchers within a year or two; by five years, he would like to see fluid interaction and constant feedback between nonprofit organizations and the center's staff.

He is looking to Tulsa's philanthropic community for help in bringing the center to its full potential but has also received workspace, staff and other contributions from the university and its outreach programs, he said. "I see this as a viable and valuable proposition."

Cheryl Delk, a family support worker for Parent-Child Center of Tulsa, said she was looking forward to having another source for research that will benefit the families her organization serves.

"It's nice to know that OSU-Tulsa is taking more than just an academic interest in our families," she said.

The center already works with researchers at the University of Oklahoma-Tulsa, but it is always looking for more information about how to improve services, she said.

Delk, who recently earned a master's degree from OSU, said the research opportunities would benefit the university's students as well. They will be able to work with local agencies and use real-life data for their studies.

"It's a win-win situation for everybody," she said.

Gann said working with the center would mean that New Hope could provide more directed and successful solutions for its clients.

"The idea that we could be that close and be participating in the research with them and get the results right then is very exciting," she said.

Shannon Muchmore 581-8378
shannon.muchmore@tulsaworld.com By SHANNON MUCHMORE World Staff Writer

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	Report Comment Few Clothes, Austin, TX (5/26/2009 12:09:20 PM) Everyone is Tulsa is at risk. At risk at getting murdered by gangsters.
	Report Comment debbiewade, Tulsa (5/26/2009 6:01:26 PM) So move already!
	Report Comment debbiewade, Tulsa (5/26/2009 6:02:12 PM) You don't really expect anyone to believe that Austin is safer do you?

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