Articles
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Education
State could suspend student testing, school grades
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister has announced that the state will seek a federal waiver to suspend both state testing for the 2019-20 school year and school report cards, two major transparency measures that have allowed officials to track the trajectory of public education in Oklahoma.Ray Carter | March 19, 2020
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Education
With schools closed, education-funding reforms could alleviate parents’ burdens
Amid the many coronavirus-related school closures, several colleges are giving students a partial refund on room and board. Some scholars say parents with pre-K through 12th-grade students deserve similar consideration for education expenses.Mike Brake | March 19, 2020
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Education
Oklahoma closes public schools—including online schools
To reduce the likelihood of coronavirus exposure among children and school staff, the Oklahoma State Board of Education voted this week to close all public schools from March 17 to April 6—including virtual charter schools.Ray Carter | March 17, 2020
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Education
Extended use of ‘emergency’ teachers approved
In 2018, Oklahoma lawmakers approved around $600 million in tax increases, in part to fund teacher pay raises officials said were needed to address a teacher shortage that had forced schools to hire emergency-certified instructors who lacked traditional credentials.Ray Carter | March 11, 2020
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Education
Anti-bullying measure advances, but aid for victims remains sidelined
Legislation requiring public schools to take more seriously reports of bullying has gained easy passage in the Oklahoma Senate. But even as lawmakers decry the growing problem of school bullying, efforts to increase the options available to victims of bullying remain sidelined at the Capitol.Ray Carter | March 11, 2020
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Budget & Tax, Education
Senate votes to use marijuana tax for school buildings
The Oklahoma Senate has narrowly approved legislation that would use marijuana taxes to fund building repair and construction in school districts with very little local property tax funding.Ray Carter | March 10, 2020
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Budget & Tax, Education
Unfunded retirement bill wins House approval
Legislation that increases state payments to retired government workers, but does not include a direct funding source, has passed the Oklahoma House of Representatives without opposition on a 99-0 vote. The measure is expected to boost the state’s unfunded liability by $800 million to $900 million.Ray Carter | March 10, 2020
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Education, Agriculture
Politicized teaching feared with ‘climate change’ standards
The inclusion of “climate change” material in Oklahoma’s new science standards for public schools, beginning as early as middle school, has business leaders concerned classrooms could become politicized and schools weaponized against economically foundational industries.Ray Carter | March 6, 2020
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Education
Scholarship program critics do about-face on tax credits
This week many who lambaste the tax-credit scholarship program voted to provide up to $50 million in tax credits to mostly out-of-state film producers, diverting a far greater sum from the state’s general revenue fund. And they supported the film program even though independent research shows its return on investment is a small fraction of the return generated by scholarship tax credits.Ray Carter | March 4, 2020
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Education, Culture & the Family
Alleged assault points up dangers of OEA/NEA ‘gender-neutral’ bathroom push
An 18-year-old student at Rhinelander High School was recently arrested for child enticement, fourth-degree sexual assault, and exposing genitals to a child. The alleged incident occurred in the school’s gender-neutral bathroom.Staff | March 4, 2020