KGOU

Oklahoma Education

When It Comes To Education Spending, Who’s Right?

By & Jennifer Palmer • Feb 12, 2019
Last year, teachers walked out and protested at the State Capitol, demanding a pay raise, which they got. But they also clamored for increased education funding and many are pressing for that again in 2019.
Whitney Bryen / Oklahoma Watch

Last year’s teacher walkout brought a renewed focus on Oklahoma’s financial commitment to public schools.

Decline In School Arts Programs Follows Funding Drop, But Cuts Aren’t Equally Felt

By Emily wendler • Jan 17, 2019
Emily Wendler / StatImpact Oklahoma

The Wanette School District is nestled in a rural stretch of Oklahoma about 30 miles southeast of Norman.

For a long time, high school juniors and seniors had a dedicated art teacher who taught class five days a week. They would paint, sketch and learn ceramics. That all changed five years ago after budget cuts forced district officials to eliminate the class.

Virtual Charter School’s Founders Ramp Up Political Contributions

By & Jennifer Palmer • Dec 3, 2018
Epic Virtual Charter School’s dramatic growth has been driven in part by marketing efforts such as creating a children’s play area at Penn Square Mall in Oklahoma City.
Mashiur Rahaman / Oklahoma Watch

Leaders of the state’s largest virtual charter school contributed at least $145,000 total to the campaigns of dozens of candidates this year, records reveal, a show of increasing political muscle as the school is experiencing dramatic growth.

Group Unveils Proposed Changes To How Oklahoma Funds Schools

By & Jennifer Palmer • Sep 25, 2018
Students work on computers in a John Rex Charter Middle School classroom at the Myriad Gardens complex in Oklahoma City.
Whitney Bryen / Oklahoma Watch

Oklahoma is moving closer to changing the way it funds schools after a yearlong look at the education funding formula by a group of lawmakers and educators.

Capitol Insider: Oklahoma Teacher Walkouts, Now And Then

By Storme Jones • Mar 9, 2018
David Longstreath / AP Photo

A successful teacher walkout in West Virginia has brought the topic of teacher pay to the forefront of public conversation. However, leaders at the Oklahoma Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union, says the impending shutdown of Oklahoma schools has been the the works for some time. And it’s happened in Oklahoma before.