News 9 Flashback: Gov. Henry Bellmon Tours Schools Ahead Of Teacher Walkout

The year was 1990, and the governor was Henry Bellmon -- and this is a News 9 Flashback from former KWTV reporter Russ McCaskey that came before the 1990 teacher walkout.

Gov. Henry Bellmon kept a brisk pace as he toured a number of schools, handing out educational awards for academic excellence. On the threat of a walkout, Bellmon still seemed optimistic that a compromise could be reached.

"I'm very optimistic. I think we'll get a good reform and funding bill through both the house and senate," Bellmon said.

Bellmon was governor of Oklahoma twice, serving from 1963 to 1967 and then again from 1987 to 1991. Bellmon died in 2009.

As McCaskey reported, the big question was whether lawmakers could come up with a plan ahead of a walkout deadline that teachers could support.

"We feel that we are trying to, of course, work out a compromise with legislative leaders," said former Oklahoma State Superintendent Sandy Garrett.

However, not all teachers supported a walkout, for a multitude of reasons. Watch all four News 9 Flashback videos from April 1990, associated with this story, and let us know if there's a story or series of stories you'd like to see as a News 9 Flashback.