Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters laid out the expectations for improvement in student test scores, teacher training and overall school performance, and the board approved his proposal.
The district is expected to:
· Have at least 50% of students testing basic or higher in reading and math on state tests in spring 2024, or increase the number of students who do by at least a 5%
· Train all teachers in the science of reading
· Remove at least 12 school sites from the state’s comprehensive support and improvement list (currently, there are 18).
“We want to see Tulsa succeed,” Walters said. “We want to see Tulsa Public Schools chart this plan out for success, and we want to see that success happen. If they fall short of it, all options will be on the table.”
Some are concerned the metrics are unachievable and unrealistic. Ashley Daly, a public education advocate whose daughter attends Tulsa Public Schools, said the Board of Education is simply laying the groundwork for an eventual takeover under the guise of high expectations.
Tulsa Public Schools is the state’s largest district, with nearly 34,000 students attending more than 70 schools. More than a third of students are multilingual learners and 80% of students’ families are low-income, according to the district.
Tulsa Public Schools staved off a state takeover or loss of accreditation this summer after parting ways with Superintendent Deborah Gist. Ultimately, the district was accredited with deficiencies, an improvement compared to 2022, when it was accredited with warning following a complaint under House Bill 1775, a state law restricting certain classroom conversations about race and gender.
