School begins today for many metro area students. Oklahoma City, Moore, Shawnee, Deer Creek and Putnam City schools are some of the districts returning from summer break.
Some 35,000 kids are expected to return to Oklahoma City Public Schools. OKCPS says it has implemented new safety measures to keep kids safe.
Drivers are also being reminded to slow down in school zones. Police agencies say they will have extra patrols around schools.
Tulsa Mayor G-T Bynum says he’s “greatly concerned” about the discord between the State Department of Education and Tulsa Public Schools.
State Superintendent Ryan Walters has floated the idea of taking away the district's accreditation, which would close schools and force students to enroll in other districts.
Bynum says he has reached out to both Walters and District Superintendent Deborah Gist.
"They both want Tulsa Public Schools to be better. What I’m trying to get a good grasp on is, where is the disagreement on how we make TPS better, and where is the common ground there?," said Bynum.
In July, four city councilors sent a letter to the State Board of Education asking them not to revoke the Tulsa district's accreditation.
A recent report finds tourism has had a dramatic effect on Oklahoma City’s economy.
More than 23 million people visited Oklahoma City last year. This generated $343 million in state and local tax revenues and sustained over 33,000 jobs. The total economic impact: $4.3 billion.
In 2022, visitors directly spent over $2 billion on food and beverages, shopping, entertainment, lodging and transportation in OKC.
Visit Oklahoma City President Zac Craig says in a news release that those billions indicate the city’s tourism economy has surpassed pre-pandemic levels.
Craig credits the blossoming of the city to the sales tax revenue generated by MAPS and says that investment is paying “dividends.”
Millions of dollars could be in jeopardy as the Oklahoma Broadband Office reevaluates ARPA funding. Fox25 reports that the office says it’s looking at how it will allocate $382 million in funding to expand internet access in rural Oklahoma. The money must be spent by the end of next year.
During a board meeting earlier this week concerns were raised about how the money will be distributed to private companies and whether it's legal.
If the ARPA funding isn't distributed correctly by the deadline next year, the state could be forced to return the money to the federal government.
A new initiative to tell stories about women behind bars in Oklahoma is taking shape.
A professional photographer is taking portraits of incarcerated women in Oklahoma. Lisa Loftus met with women at Eddie Warrior Correctional Center in Taft. Loftus says this is the first time she's been given access to an Oklahoma prison, describing an urgent call from sponsor nonprofit Poetic Justice that promotes positive self-regard among prisoners.
"Well, I was on a job, and Ellen texted me and said, do you have a minute? Call me right away. And she said, can you get back to Tulsa? I said what do you mean, what's happening? She said they're letting you come in," Loftus said.
Loftus will spend two days photographing and collaborating with the women to select their favorite shots.
Loftus, who is based in San Diego, says the portraits tell a complex story of humanity. Oklahoma continues to have one of the highest rates of imprisonment for women in the country.
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