Registration for the inaugural Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) Advocacy Boot Camp will close on Wed., July 31 at 5 p.m. CDT.

The year-long program will focus on making those interested in being a voice for children even more effective, said Joe Dorman, OICA’s CEO.

“Oklahoma’s children need for adults to be their collective voice when it comes to both advocating and leading,” he said. “The Advocacy Boot Camp, or ‘ABC,’ is a great way for today’s child advocates to learn to be more effective and make a difference immediately.”

The Advocacy Boot Camp is a spinoff of a program operated by OICA from 1995 to 2010 called the Kids Count Leadership Program. Several inaugural sponsors participated in this original program and have generously made it possible for the cost to attend ABC to be reduced for participants. Among those sponsors are Potts Family Foundation, Sarkeys Foundation, Paycom, AT&T, Centene Corporation, and EdChoice.

“We are incredibly grateful to the initial sponsors for their investment in a brighter future for Oklahoma’s children,” Dorman concluded. “We certainly would welcome assistance from other organizations and businesses to sponsor and have employees attend, and we anticipate some will cover the tuition for their own employees to be in the inaugural class.”

According to Renee Herrman, OICA’s program director, the seven-session program will provide coursework on how participants can be stronger advocates on key issues relating to children, and possibly be candidates for office someday. “This will be the primary goal of the ABC,” she said.

The sessions will be held in several state locations, including Sequoyah State Park in September, Lawton in October, Oklahoma City in November and January 2025, Stillwater in April, and Tulsa in May. The final session will overlap with the incoming class for the next year.

Among the topics which participants will study will be the dangers of toxic trauma and how to protect children, support services for youth and families, the legislative process including how to communicate effectively with policymakers, overcoming the digital divide in our state through technology, and how to better utilize the resources already in place to improve children’s lives. Various aspects of Oklahoma will also be covered, such as rural versus urban issues, the impact of sovereign nations on their regions of Oklahoma, how the military connects with communities for youth, and what many local nonprofits are doing to support better opportunities for children.

“This inaugural class will be the next generation of policy leaders,” Dorman said. “Trained advocates will leave with the skills to lead organizations in communities across the state, working at the grassroots level to make Oklahoma a better place for its youngest residents, and possibly even run for an elective office.”

The cost to apply for the program is $50, and for those accepted that money goes towards your registration fee of $500. These events will be multi-day events with hotels and food included for the entirety of the event over multiple months. There are limited spaces available. To register for OICA’s inaugural Advocacy Boot Camp, go to https://www.oica.org/abc.