Helen Harrod Thompson is the co-creator of the Family Shelter for Victims of Domestic Violence in Ardmore, Oklahoma. In 2006, Thompson was selected to create Senior University, a program that gained national recognition by th
Association for Continuing Higher Education
as an Adult Model Program. Thompson was inducted into the Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame in 2011 for her career focused on the welfare of children, domestic violence and abuse prevention.

Early life

Helen Harrod Thompson was born in

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, and ...

, where she lived for all of her childhood. Thompson attended Northeast High School and after she graduated, moved away to Staunton, Virginia to attend

Mary Baldwin College Mary Baldwin University (MBU, formerly Mary Baldwin College) is a private university in Staunton, Virginia. It was founded in 1842 as Augusta Female Seminary. Today, Mary Baldwin University is home to the Mary Baldwin College for Women, a resid ...

. She attended the college for a year, then moved back to Oklahoma, where she completed her undergraduate education at the

University of Oklahoma , mottoeng = "For the benefit of the Citizen and the State" , type = Public research university , established = , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.7billion (2021) , pr ...

. Thompson majored in home economics and became a home demonstration agent.

Career

After graduation, Thompson became a Home Service Consultant for OG+E. She would travel to homes and schools, where she would ademonstrate how to use and cook on the all new electric range. Thompson was married for several years, quitting the work force and having children, before eventually getting a divorce and returning to school to earn her master's degree in counseling and administration. She became an elementary counselor and was with that school district for 22 years. A little later Thompson went into administration and community education within that district where she incorporated a
Even Start
program. Thompson was also involved with th
C/SARA
(Crisis Support and Resources Association) foundation, a non-profit that helps with training adults at schools on how to deal with the students' crises. Around 2000, they developed the Child Advocacy Center in Ardmore, also called "Sara's House."

Post retirement

When Thompson reached the age of retirement in 2006, The Ardmore Higher Education center, asked her to join its team in creating what became known as the "Senior University," a program that gained national recognition by th
Association for Continuing Higher Education
as an Adult Model Program.Harrod Thompson," Oklahoma Commission of the Status of Women.2011.
Accessed April 9, 2018. Thompson has also served as a trustee and officer of the Children's Shelter,

YWCA The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swi ...

, and the Greater Southwest Historical Museum. In 2011, she was inducted into the Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame. As of 2011, she was actively involved in legislative and legal matters of concern to citizens of Oklahoma.

Notes

References

External links

Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame Oral History Project -- OSU Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Helen Harrod Living people People from Oklahoma City University of Oklahoma alumni American social workers Year of birth missing (living people)