Lowry of Children's Rights Compliments Pinnacle Plan

(New York, NY) — Today three independent, court-appointed child welfare experts approved the latest version of the Pinnacle Plan, developed by the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS), resulting from the January 2012 settlement of the class action lawsuit brought by Children’s Rights, a national nonprofit advocacy organization, and Frederic Dorwart Lawyers in Tulsa. Marcia Robinson Lowry, executive director of Children’s Rights, issued the following statement:

“The settlement has produced a wide-ranging, comprehensive plan that commits DHS both to necessary reforms in the state’s foster care system and to the best ways of implementing those reforms. The strength and specificity of the plan demonstrates the wisdom of having independent child welfare experts overseeing the process of remedying the problems identified in the lawsuit. The resulting roadmap, created by DHS and guided by these experts, inevitably will transform Oklahoma’s foster care system into one that consistently benefits and protects those children whose lives depend on it. Given the considerable impact this will have on Oklahoma’s abused and neglected children, it is gratifying to see the settlement agreement begin to come to fruition.”