Muskogee Community Leader Reappointed to State Disability Agency Commission

Department of Rehabilitation Services Commissioner Ray Kirk from Muskogee baits a hook for an Oklahoma School for the Blind Student on a field trip in 2008.
 

MUSKOGEE, Okla. – Muskogee County resident Ray Kirk was reappointed to his second three-year term as a Department of Rehabilitation Services (DRS) commissioner by the current Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn Coffee, a Republican from Oklahoma City.

Kirk was also elected vice chair of the commission.

He was first appointed three years ago by Mike Morgan, a Democrat from Stillwater, who was president pro tempore at that time.

DRS annually serves nearly 70,000 Oklahomans with disabilities through vocational rehabilitation, employment, independent living, educational programs and the determination of medical eligibility for disability benefits.

The Oklahoma School for the Blind in Muskogee, also known as Parkview School, is a division of DRS.

“I agreed to serve again because I believe in DRS and the outstanding services the agency and our School for the Blind provide to citizens with disabilities,” Kirk stated. “However, with the economic downturn and budget cut-backs, it’s going to be a challenge.”

Kirk believes that the outstanding leadership of the new DRS Director Mike O’Brien, Ed. D., will enable staff to continue providing services to citizens who need help as well as the taxpayers and agency employees in an excellent manner.

For more information about the Department of Rehabilitation Services, call (800) 845-8476 or visit DRS’ Web site at www.okdrs.gov