OKLAHOMA CAPITOL -- Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Child Support Enforcement Division (CSED) Director Gary Dart presented Muskogee District Court Judge Mike Norman with the 2007 Excellence Judicial Award in a surprise ceremony May 31.

Dart presented the award on behalf of the National Child Support Enforcement Association (NCSEA) in Washington, D.C.

“The judge is receiving the Judicial Award because of his dedication and his use of innovative methods to increase the payment of child support for Eastern Oklahoma’s children,” said Dart. “Judge Norman receives this award also as a result of his initiation of a problem-solving court approach, involving the Court Liaison Program, which now exists in all five of the counties in which Judge Norman presides - Muskogee, Wagoner, Adair, Cherokee and Sequoyah.”

According to Dart, in one year, the program in these five counties has yielded more than $2 million in incarceration cost savings to the counties and generated $789,963.51 in payments for children, a 71 percent increase over last year.

“Judge Norman has been a strong champion of the Court Liaison Program, especially getting people to work so they meet their financial obligations,” said Tery DeShong, managing attorney with CSED in Tahlequah. “He makes his expectations clear to delinquent non-custodial parents. He consistently holds them accountable when they don’t fulfill their commitments. That consistency is really important.”

The Court Liaison Program, funded and managed through OKDHS CSED, works with non-custodial parents who have been delinquent in meeting their child support obligations.

“The Court Liaison Program helps non-custodial parents turn their lives around,” said Ted Williams, Court Liaison coordinator. “It helps them identify and break down barriers to employment, upgrade skills when needed, find good jobs, consistently pay their child support obligations, and most importantly, it improves the lives of their children.”

The Court Liaison Program Eastern Oklahoma was the first program of this type implemented in the state. Its success led to the implementation of the program in four central Oklahoma CSED offices. It is now expected to grow into other areas of the state.

At the ceremony, Muskogee Mayor Wren Stratton proclaimed May 31, 2007, as Judge Mike Norman Day.

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