TPS Superintendent Responds To Gov. Stitt's Address In Facebook Post

Dr. Deborah Gist, the superintendent of Tulsa Public Schools responded to Gov. Kevin Stitt in a Facebook post following the State of the State address.

In the State of the State, Gov. Stitt singled out Tulsa Public Schools as the district has not returned to in-person learning.

"It's now been 325 days since Tulsa students in 4th through 12th grades have been allowed to be in their classrooms -- 325 days," Gov. Stitt said.

Related Video: WATCH: Gov. Kevin Stitt's 2021 'State Of The State' Address

In response, Dr. Gist stated that while other officials have offered support, the Governor has only attacked the district and not reached out to them.

"For months, he targeted our district and our decisions with inaccurate and uninformed statements. He never once reached out to us directly. I tried, without success, to reach out to him," Gist said in a social media post.

Dr. Gist also said that the district has made hard choices and claimed a lack of leadership from Gov. Stitt during the COVID-19 pandemic:

"We are a district that is managing the effects of his failed leadership. We know there are no good choices. We know our students need to be in school. We have done and are doing everything in our power to manage this without support from, and often in spite of, the leader of our state."

Dr. Gist also went on to say that the governor is bullying the district.

"Our governor is a bully," Dr. Gist said in a social media post.

She also stated that "Our governor only attacks. He pits families against teachers and districts against other districts and confuses an already tumultuous time for all of us."

The Governor's office issued a statement in response to Dr. Gist, saying,

"The Governor will continue to stand with parents to make sure the district puts students first and will never back down until the day Tulsa's students have the option to be back in their classrooms."

Dr. Gist's full statement, which was posted on Facebook, is below:

"Our governor is a bully.

The word “bully” is overused. As an educator, I can’t help but cringe when it is used outside of the technical definition we have.

So, let’s consider the word.

A bully is not someone with whom you disagree.

A bully is not someone who says something you don’t like.

A bully is not someone who challenges your decisions or ideas.

A bully is not someone who is unkind or even mean-spirited.

So what is a bully? A bully has a habitual behavior of aggression. According to www.stopbullying.gov, bullying is “unwanted, aggressive behavior among school-aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time.” The educational use of the term also includes that bullies use their behavior to try to control others and to advance their own social standing.

While the definition of bullying specifically refers to school-aged children, bullies sadly show up in other parts of our lives.

Our governor is a bully.

Bullies are, unfortunately, a part of life. In school, we work hard to create environments that do not allow bullies to act, and we take action to address them. We also, as parents and teachers, work with students to help them understand how to best handle bullies.

A bully wants attention, and they like to get a reaction from you. They thrive from the conflict they create. So, one way to handle those who bully verbally is to not react. If they do not get the reaction they want, they may move on to another target.

With our governor, I tried that. For months, he targeted our district and our decisions with inaccurate and uninformed statements. He never once reached out to us directly. I tried, without success, to reach out to him. So, we have kept our heads high and continued making difficult decisions on behalf of students, our team, and their families. We have stayed focused on what mattered most.

Unfortunately, sometimes bullies double down on their behavior particularly if they have a target they enjoy or one that is getting them the attention they desire. That is, sadly, what our governor did. Sometimes when a bully backs you into a corner, you have to defend yourself despite what you would prefer to do.

So I have.

The other thing to know about bullies is that they have a subconscious motive for their behavior. Typically, they have issues with self-esteem, and bullying makes them feel stronger. A bully often is also distracting others from their own faults. So, a bully in school is often a child who is struggling academically and wants to take that attention away and point it toward others.

Consider this. We live in a state that has had one of the highest COVID rates in the entire world. Our governor has done very little to address that and has, in fact, behaved in ways that exacerbated the work of health professionals. Now, rather than owning that situation and focusing on the efforts to address it, he wants to point in our direction. He is preying on the very real and understandable fear, frustration, and anger of our families and deflecting from what he has done to cause the situation.

We are a district that is managing the effects of his failed leadership. We know there are no good choices. We know our students need to be in school. We have done and are doing everything in our power to manage this without support from, and often in spite of, the leader of our state.

Others have stepped up. Our state superintendent, our state health commissioner, and many others in Oklahoma, and Tulsa specifically, are working to support schools and to lead through this crisis.

They listen. They advise. They support. They collaborate.

Our governor only attacks. He pits families against teachers and districts against other districts and confuses an already tumultuous time for all of us. He is intentionally seeking to divide us more than this horrible situation already has.

After ignoring the advice of the Trump White House Task Force and even hiding their feedback until it was too late, he spends precious time creating drama rather than solving problems. That is not what a good leader does.

That is the behavior of a bully.

We tell our children that they are strong and can respectfully and in a dignified way respond to a bully. Most importantly, we tell them not to waste their time or energy on bullies.

Well, the governor has wasted enough of ours.

Our families need us. Our students need us. They need our full attention and energy to get our children back to school in person and to keep them there. Our teachers and other team members need us. They need for us to focus on keeping them as safe as we can while they serve our students.

So, that is what we will do."