Oklahoma mentor teaching program
A former public school administrator and current state lawmaker is hoping to encourage new teachers to stay in the classroom by expanding the state’s mentor teaching program.
Senate Bill 48 was filed by Midwest City Republican Senator Brenda Stanley, who has 43 years of public school experience under her belt. Under her bill, a mentor teacher would earn $2,000 a year to guide a new teacher for three years.
Stanley says the state’s responses to its teaching shortage by consistently lowering the bar to be an educator has led to devaluing of the training and expertise that comes with traditional certification.
“Those are years lost for children too, when you have somebody in front of a classroom that truly does not know how to teach, how to form a lesson plan, how to figure out where my starting point is and what my goal is to finish with my students. You don’t produce quality for students if you don’t have a well-trained instructor in front of them.”
The bill will be up for review when the legislative session begins in February.
Oklahoma City’s New Year’s Eve event is expected to draw big crowds
Oklahoma City’s New Year’s Eve event is expected to draw big crowds this weekend.
Arts Council Oklahoma City’s annual Opening Night celebration begins at 7 p.m. this Saturday with live entertainment and family friendly activities.
Organizers are expecting pre-pandemic crowds and have lined up extra volunteers.
For the past two years, the event was held in the Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark, but this year it will be held in several venues across the city.
The night will end with a midnight fireworks show at Bicentennial Park to ring in the New Year.
OSBI investigating inmate death
The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation is investigating after an inmate was found dead in the Stephens County Jail on Christmas Day.
According to the OSBI, another inmate found the inmate unresponsive and immediately began life-saving measures. However, the inmate was already dead.
The inmate was transported to the medical examiner’s office which will determine the cause and manner of death.
COVID update
Thirty-four more COVID-19 fatalities bring Oklahoma’s Provisional Death Count to 17,383.
In its weekly update Thursday, the State Health Department reported nearly 4,800 new positive tests for the Coronavirus the week ending Dec. 17. The number of active cases has increased just under 9,500.
The agency also reported 230 COVID-19 patients in Oklahoma hospital beds including 49 in intensive care and 23 children.
Abandoned train bridge in Oklahoma City set to be repurposed for pedestrian use
A bridge over the Oklahoma River that once accommodated trains in the latter half of the 20th century is scheduled to be converted to a pedestrian bridge starting in the summer of 2024. The bridge conversion project will be funded by a 2017 voter-approved bond. According to an article in the Oklahoman newspaper, the city’s budget allows for 1.3 million dollars to convert the bridge, but a preliminary report from an architecture company predicts even the most basic design will be over budget by $275,000 due to economic factors and the need to remove lead paint from the current structure. Oklahoma City officials say the city has enough funds to complete the base design, but further enhancements could be funded through another bond package.
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