Tulsa Public Schools Gives District Update At State Board of Education Meeting

Tulsa public schools gave an update to the state board of education on ways the district is improving. This comes after state superintendent Ryan Walters told the district they needed to give monthly updates to the state board of education.

Thursday, October 26th 2023, 2:03 pm

By: Jordan Tidwell

Superintendent Ryan Walters At October Board Meeting

OKLAHOMA CITY -

The Oklahoma State Board of Education held its monthly meeting Thursday morning.

Recent meetings have been met with overflowing rooms and protestors but Thursday’s agenda began with the swearing-in of a new board member, Zachary Archer.

After that, State Superintendent Ryan Walters outlined issues of concern that he has for Oklahoma schools. Walters said that one of the top issues he hears is a lack of discipline in the classroom. He said that he was announcing "comprehensive discipline reform" and that he wanted to have accountability in place so that every teacher can teach effectively. Walters did not provide any specifics about the reform and said that more details would be announced later.

Walters then turned his attention to the war between Israel and Hamas. Walters claimed to have seen troubling statements coming out of higher ed regarding the nation of Israel and said that he wants to make sure anti-Israel teaching doesn’t go on in K-12. He said that he wants to make sure that Oklahoma schools are teaching that Israel is a nation-state that has a right to exist and that young people are clear about where the nation stands. He said his staff would be looking over materials to make sure that was not happening.

Tulsa Public Schools Provides Update To Board Of Education

The focus of today's update was reading within the district. Interim superintendent Dr Ebony Johnson broke down how the district plans to improve.

“Student success is of course our ultimate goal, and the work we do pushes for student success,” Dr. Johnson said.

Dr. Johnson went through the reading programs the district uses, the way teachers are trained, and how they want to improve this school year.

“From our projections, we expect to see a 5% point increase, in OSDE proficiency, but our aspirations are significantly higher,” she said.

State Superintendent Ryan Walters says he’s been pleased with Dr. Johnson and he wants the district to be a success story, but there’s still work to be done.

“I would love for the folks in this room to come in here and we get to do this incredible final meeting of the year about what happened in Tulsa, and look at the trajectory for these kids, but if that’s not where we’re headed, we will intervene,” he said.

The district is set to present at the next board meeting on November 30.

Dr. Johnson says the district will focus on financial transparency and corrective action at the district

Story Timeline: Board Of Education Places Tulsa Public Schools On Accreditation With Deficiencies

The State Board of Education voted to change the status of Tulsa Public Schools to Accredited With Deficiencies on Thursday, August 24.

State Superintendent Ryan Walters said that if he does not see the turnaround that he wants in the district, he will "leave every option on the table to force this district to serve these kids". Which could include revoking accreditation and even taking state control of the district.

"You have failing schools, that have been allowed to fail year after year without a serious plan for a turnaround..." said Walters. "I will advise Tulsa Public Schools, do not test me. I'm willing to do whatever it takes for these kids."

Walters went on to say he plans to have monthly check-ups and that there will be strong action in the next months if he and the State Board are not satisfied. He said the state can reconvene in four months or so and decide on the progress at the district.

"The clock has started," said Walters.

Tulsa Public Schools said Thursday that the district "will continue to foster an environment of excellence and growth, working hand-in-hand with our educators, staff, families, community, and the State Board of Education."

Read TPS's full statement below:

"Tulsa Public Schools is grateful for the decision of the State Board of Education. We appreciate the opportunity for members of Tulsa’s Board of Education to engage in meaningful discussion with the State Board of Education for the benefit of our students. We remain dedicated to our mission of providing high-quality education to our students. We will continue to foster an environment of excellence and growth, working hand-in-hand with our educators, staff, families, community, and the State Board of Education.

We understand the urgency to address challenges in our educational outcomes. Today, the State Board of Education committed to working with our locally-elected school board to accelerate progress for students and ensure transparency in district operations. This work is underway in earnest, and we are focused on strengthening our efforts and plans in service of our students' achievement.

We would like to extend our gratitude to the Tulsa community, our families, our students, and our remarkable educators and staff, who contribute tirelessly to our students’ success. Tulsa Public Schools is committed to rising above challenges, collaborating with our partners, and providing the best education for every student we serve."

Walters posted the video below to Twitter titled "Saving Tulsa Public Schools," in response to the OSDE meeting:

In the video, Walters says that Tulsa Public Schools is being given an opportunity to change and is moving in the right direction.

"Good afternoon, Oklahomans. I just got out of my State Board of Education meeting. There is tremendous opportunity for Tulsa. They've gotten rid of Deborah Gist, who was holding students down, who wasn't hitting the goals that all parents have for their kids. Tulsa has made that step to move in the right direction. I was clear with Tulsa. The Tulsa board today, they had the opportunity to turn the district around. We've given them guidance, we've given them goals to hit, and this is their opportunity. This is their opportunity to come together and turn around this district. I will not allow Tulsa Public Schools to fail; either the district will turn it around or I will. I am hopeful to see Tulsa turn around, but there will be accountability. There will be monthly checks, and then we will come to a hard decision on what happens next. History is full of these moments where you have the ability to change course and Tulsa's been given one right now. They've been given the opportunity to turn it around. I'm excited for the future and excited to get these kids learning," Walters said in the video posted to Twitter on Thursday.

What Are The Cited Deficiencies At Tulsa Public Schools

The two concerns the State School board are "misuse of finances" and inadequate financial disclosures. Tulsa Public School was Accredited With a Warning prior to Thursday's vote. The new status means that they are in better standing but still have to meet expectations set by the State Board.

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.

TPS said it is facing two district-wide deficiencies and three warnings for individual schools. The TPS district was found to have been in violation of House Bill 1775 last year, which regulates how sex and gender are taught in classrooms.

The state's Executive Director of Accreditation, Ryan Pieper, outlined some of the most aggressive actions 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, and its nutrition program, and the district disabled the fire suppression system.

It's the only district "takeover" Ryan Pieper can recall in state history.

What Are The Levels Of Accreditation?

There are five levels of status after an accreditation.

The levels include:

Accredited With No Deficiencies meaning all standards met
Accredited With Deficiencies meaning standards aren’t met but don’t impact the quality of education.
Accredited With Warning says the deficiency seriously distracts from the quality of education.
Accredited With Probation means the lack of progress and failure to get back on track.
Non-accredited

The Tulsa School Board approved the resignation of then-Superintendent Dr. Deborah Gist on August 22 and appointed the current district Chief Learning Officer, Dr. Ebony Johnson, as interim superintendent.

How Did The Dispute Of Tulsa Public Schools' Accreditation Begin?

The strained relationship between Tulsa Public Schools and state leaders doesn't have a clear origin point, but tensions rose in 2021 when Governor Kevin Stitt criticized the district for its response to COVID-19 in his State of the State Address that February.

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

Superintendent Gist took those statements as an attack on TPS, calling the Governor a bully on social media. A year later, issues continued when school board members asked Governor Stitt to audit the district "and the potential mishandling of public funds."

The Governor also said the district might have violated House Bill 1775, which prohibits schools from teaching Critical Race Theory.

Shortly after that, the state school board voted to lower TPS's accreditation to Accreditation with Warning, despite objections from Dr. Gist.

"When House Bill 1775 was signed into law, we reviewed our curriculum for compliance and determined with confidence that we are," said Gist.

Their accreditation was brought up again this July, during a rally held by State Superintendent Ryan Walters, defending a TPS school board member's right to pray at graduation.

"What you see is a continued assault against religious beliefs in our public school system," said Walters.

At the end of that meeting, Walters suggested TPS's accreditation will be looked at again. Since that time, Walters has stepped up his calls for Gist to resign.

She eventually announced her resignation Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 22, just two days before the state makes its decision on the district's accreditation. Gist said stepping down is the hardest thing she's ever done.