TPS Superintendent Gist Says District Is Open To Working With Walters On Improvement Plan

State Superintendent Ryan Walters says Tulsa Public Schools has to step it up or there could be consequences for the district.

Walters laid out several improvements that need to be made at the district by the end of the upcoming school year, but Dr. Deborah Gist says he has not made them clear and wants to work together.

Ryan Walters says the Tulsa Public School District needs significant change to happen, especially with reading proficiency.

WATCH: Ryan Walters Press Conference About Tulsa Public Schools

"Tulsa Public Schools, by the end of this academic year, should at least be at the state average for reading performance,” Walters said.

Gist said the statistics for students' reading skills at TPS that Walters presented Monday are not accurate.

"What is accurate is that in 2018, TPS as a whole, all students, was at 22% proficiency and in 2022 following the pandemic, we are at 13%, like 12.9%,” Gist said.

Walters also mentioned concerns with finances and Gist's leadership.

“In the last seven years we've continued to see failed leadership from superintendent gist here in Tulsa,” Walters said. “What we’ve seen are our students continue to have poor achievement, financial mismanagement and a lack of specificity around academic programs.”

With everything going on, Gist’s said her main priority is starting the school year on a good note.

“My commitment right now is that despite all this effort to distract us, which has just been going on for years, we are going to stay focused,” Gist said. “We have school starting a week from Thursday, we have a lot to do to be ready for that. Our teachers are coming back this week, we have orientation day starting on Monday with the students transitioning in different grade levels, there's a lot going on right now and that is what we are trying to stay focused on."

TPS students will head back to school on Aug. 17.

What Improvements Does Walters Want Tulsa Public Schools To Make This Year?

State Superintendent Ryan Walters, under his TPS Improvement Plan, said he wants to see the district re-orient finances to serve students, increase reading proficiency scores to the state average, and get TPS schools off the F-List.

Walters released his Improvement Plan at the Tulsa Republican Party HQ on Monday.

What Happens If Tulsa Public Schools Loses Accreditation?

The state's Executive Director of Accreditation, Ryan Pieper, outlined some of the most aggressive action the state has taken against schools in recent history when it comes to accreditation, saying students are in a better place today because of it. 

The former charter school SeeWorth Academy lost its accreditation for the 2019-2020 school year, after the state said it wasn't complying with federal programs, and it impacted graduation credits.

Another situation involved the Western Heights School District in OKC, which was accredited with probation in for the 2021-2022 school year, after the state said the district had issues with financial audits, its nutrition program, and the district disabled the fire suppression system. It's the only district "takeover" Ryan Pieper can recall in state history.