State Board Approves Proposed Contract For Nation’s First Publicly Funded Religious School
The nation’s first publicly funded religious school is one step closer to becoming a reality. The Statewide Virtual Charter School Board approved the contract Monday for the St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual Charter School.
The decision to approve the contract between the board and St. Isidore was split 3-2, with the board’s chair, Robert Franklin, as one of the two nay votes. Franklin has voted against St. Isidore’s establishment from the beginning, citing looming constitutional questions.
"I am very concerned about, you know, the oath that I took, just like everybody else, to uphold the State Charter Schools Act and the state’s constitution. It’s very, very problematic. It does not align well," Franklin said.
The approval of St. Isidore’s application this summer set off a firestorm of national controversy. Oklahoma’s attorney general, who advised the board against approving the application, is not representing the board on the matter because of that decision. And a lawsuit calling for an injunction against the school’s opening is working its way through the courts, with a December date set for a hearing. In the meantime, St. Isidore will now review and potentially sign the contract.
School, Municipal Bond Elections Tuesday In 22 Counties
Special elections are set for Tuesday in 22 counties.
Midwest City and Del City voters will consider a $492 million school bond package.
It would fund construction of a new elementary school, an indoor aquatic center and 10 new storm shelters across the Mid-Del school district.
Norman residents will vote on a 10-year, $50 million bond targeting bridge replacements and repairs.
Bartlesville residents will decide a $17 million bond issue that will largely focus on road improvements.
Meanwhile, Comanche County voters in southwestern Oklahoma will choose party nominees for a state Senate seat that was vacated this summer.
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday.
Tulsa Race Massacre Survivor Dies
One of the last survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre has died.
State Rep. Regina Goodwin confirmed Monday evening that Hughes Van Ellis died at the age of 102.
Ellis was less than a year old when he survived the massacre, in which a white mob is estimated to have killed as many as 300 people when it razed the prosperous Tulsa neighborhood known as Black Wall Street.
Ellis was one of three living survivors suing the city of Tulsa for reparations for the massacre. The other survivors are his sister Viola Fletcher, who’s 109, and Lessie Benningfield Randle, who’s 108.
Hundreds Gather At First Americans Museum To Celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day
Hundreds of people flocked to Oklahoma City’s Indigenous Peoples Day celebration at the First Americans Museum Monday. For many it's a day of celebration for Native communities.
As people walked to the top of the museum’s mound, Phillip Billy worked as the stickball game announcer on the field below.
For him, Indigenous Peoples’ Day is an open celebration of identities and traditions like stickball.
"Indigenous Day is very important because it came on the back of a lot of people who sacrificed and suffered for generations, if not centuries, to make it happen what’s happening today. So, it’s very important for me to continue those traditions and move forward," said Billy.
Oklahoma is one of the 17 states with a holiday honoring Indigenous peoples on the second Monday in October. Oklahoma City started its annual observance in 2018, three years before President Joe Biden officially recognized the holiday in 2021.
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