The Norman Children's Right Commission Award for Outstanding Service to Children is presented to individuals or organizations in Norman who have shown outstanding effort, achievement and/or leadership in the service of children. This year our very own Clinical Director, Fran Roberson, LCSW, LMFT, was selected by the Commission and honored at the Norman City Council meeting on April 26th.
Fran has been a dynamic leader for the last 26 years both within the organization and the community and has significantly contributed to services that address child abuse and neglect. Her years of hard work and dedication to serve the community in the capacity she does today make her worthy of this honor. Fran truly is a role model to advocates of and service providers for children and families across the state.
Congrats Fran! We are so proud of you!!
Letter of Recommendation
from Denilyn Jordan, LCSW:
Dear Commissioners,
I am honored to call your attention to an outstanding advocate for and service provider to children, Fran Roberson. She has improved the lives of children in this community for 26 years. Her contributions include: program initiation, program development, training of students, advocating in the court system and other organizations serving children, and educating and nurturing professionals new to the field.
Fran Roberson was instrumental in visioning and forming the collaborative effort that resulted in the creation of the Mary Abbott House and the Child Abuse Response Team. She recognized the need to reduce the stress for children being interviewed concerning possible victimization by child abuse. She convened representatives from the concerned entities including: law enforcement officers, Child Welfare workers, mental health counselors, medical professionals, and juvenile court representatives. With Fran’s guidance the group developed a plan with the Mary Abbott House as the product. In addition to the streamlining of the investigative process, the collaboration encouraged the team addressing child abuse issues to develop a better productive working relationship
Observing the needs of children experiencing trauma due to child abuse, Fran Roberson sought to educate the staff at the Center for Children and Families to better serve this population. She recognized the innovative work being done by Dr. Bruce Perry, a Neuro-Psychiatrist and trauma expert. She sought funding and invited Dr. Perry to come to Norman to train the CCFI staff as well as other professionals in the community. She then initiated within the Center for Children and Families a Trauma Focused Services. The program offers intensive services to traumatized children and their families and has served close to 40 families since 2007.
Fran Roberson was the Director of the Parent’s Assistance Program at CCFI for 16 years. She built the program from offering one group a week to offering 5 adult group and 8 children’s groups each week. The groups addressed the healing needs of families experiencing abuse and neglect. Whether the issues were addiction, neglect, lack of skills for infant care or lack of parenting skills, the groups were tailored for the parents. The children were seen in simultaneous therapeutic play groups fostering their healing. Fran developed the curriculum and trained the group leaders.
Fran has served as the Clinical Director at CCFI since 2001. In this role she has trained professionals, volunteers and students. She has been instrumental in the visioning and growth of every program including, Parents Assistance, Teenage Parenting, Divorce Visitation Arbitration and Neighborhood Centers. She supervises the directors of these programs and as an inspirational leader has helped them develop caring programs responsive to the needs of the children and parents they serve.
Fran’s caring and dedications have served as a model to the CCFI staff for 26 years. She has been a dynamic leader both within CCFI and in the community. But these words do not capture the profound compassion Fran has for children and families. In addition to her many accomplishment, her legacy will include creating an agency environment with the belief by all staff that children and families deserve to be safe, respected and offered opportunities to grow.
Respectfully submitted,
Denilyn Jordan LCSW
Children’s Program Director, Retired
