Oklahoma Makes Top 10 For Job Growth
New data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics ranks Oklahoma ninth in the nation for job creation.
Economists attribute the ranking to the state's long-term investments in non-traditional industries like aerospace, healthcare and financial services.
The ranking is based on job growth over the past five years.
The state's low cost of living is cited as a key factor in attracting both residents and newcomers.
Texas and Florida were the top two states. California and New York dropped out of the top 10.
Authorities Preparing For New Oklahoma Immigration Law Enforcement
Local law enforcement officers are preparing for the implementation of Oklahoma’s new immigration law.
HB-4156 criminalizes anyone in the state without legal immigration status.
Oklahoma County Sheriff Tommie Johnson said his office will enforce the law.
Sheriff Johnson said his deputies will not be seeking to arrest individuals solely for committing Oklahoma’s new immigration crime known as impermissible occupation.
"We're going to enforce the law, and while enforcing the law, and during an investigation process once a crime has been committed, if it has been deemed and observed that this person who committed the crime is an illegal immigrant then we will take action," Johnson said.
But that’s nothing new, Johnson said.
"We were always doing that. We were always complying with our federal partners," said Johnson.
What’s new is jailing people locally for breaking a state crime that’s based on a federal law. That’s not something that’s happening, but that we can expect starting next month as the new law takes effect.
OKCPS Begins Enrollment For Upcoming School Year
Oklahoma City Public Schools is already getting ready for the next academic year.
Families can now enroll students online or receive in-person assistance at various locations until July 30.
OKCPS encourages families to enroll sooner rather than later as the district will use enrollment data to plan staffing needs.
The district plans to host a career fair on June 10 to address staffing requirements for the upcoming year.
Techniques For Teaching Kids To Read May Change
The state is poised to overhaul the way educators teach kids to read.
Lawmakers went all-in on mandating science of reading techniques this legislative session.
The “Strong Readers Act” is awaiting the governor’s signature.
Senate Bill 362 garnered overwhelming bipartisan support this session.
It overhauls what WAS called the Reading Sufficiency Act and creates the Statewide Literacy Revolving Fund for teacher training on science of reading methods.
The bill also bolsters student screenings and timely interventions for reading deficiencies and requires early childhood or elementary education degree-seekers to pass a reading instruction test.
Science of reading techniques are research-backed methods that teach children to read by emphasizing individual sounds of words, understanding how letters are grouped to form sounds, and knowing and understanding vocabulary in sentences.
Some Oklahoma schools are already making the transition - at the demand of the State Board of Education, Tulsa Public Schools recently trained ALL of the district’s elementary and secondary teachers on the science of reading.
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