OSDE Misses Out On Federal Funding For 2023 Crisis Intervention Teams

The Oklahoma State Department of Education missed out on federal funding for crisis intervention teams. 

That money is given out by the Department of Justice -- to help schools respond in times of need.

In 2023, the Department of Education didn't apply for those funds and even told districts they had to cover the cost of crisis training.

In 2019, the state's education department received just under a million dollars to fund a crisis intervention team. 

The volunteers and one paid team leader would respond to different schools across the state. Most recently, the team responded to Owasso Public Schools after non-binary student Nex Benedict died by suicide.  A journalist at the Frontier started looking into how the education department used anti-bullying and crisis response resources in the last year.

"OSDE has faced a lot of scrutiny over its handling of federal grants over the past year or so," said Ari Fife with The Frontier. 

Fife says the original federal funding for the team expired in 2023. Fife worked with a former OSDE grant writer who says the state did not do what it needed to do even to get federal funds. 

"She worked for about three months on an application to secure another round of funding to support those things but was ultimately unable," said Fife. 

Fife says the grant writer needed the correct information from OSDE administrators to apply. "She says it was an administrative error," said Fife. 

Superintendent Ryan Walters is outspoken about federal grants, saying his team will not apply if they do not align with Oklahoma's values. "We also had the media dredge up stories over a year ago, so, we are talking about a year ago when we were coming to office, we fired all of these terrible employees that undermine the agency," said State Superintendent Ryan Walters. 

I asked Walters at yesterday's monthly board meeting how a crisis intervention team does not align with Oklahoma values. "I do not know the specifics of the crisis intervention team, but I do know the grants are different every year," said Walters. 

Fife says OSDE tells her they'll apply for this year's federal crisis funding, but the state missed out last year on this money. Fife is still left without answers, as well. 

Related: https://www.readfrontier.org/stories/under-ryan-walters-oklahoma-lost-federal-funding-to-help-schools-respond-to-tragedies/

Owasso PS Statement: 

"OPS is grateful to the Oklahoma State Department of Education crisis response team, who provided support to the district following Nex’s death.

After learning about the counseling supports already in place for OPS students, families and staff via our own experienced team of counselors, our partnerships with CREOKS, Grand Mental Health, Tristesse Grief Center and our local pastors support group, the state’s crisis team felt confident in the district’s response.

The OSDE crisis response team later visited Owasso High School to provide optional support for staff and administrators.

I believe that OSDE initially reached out to the district to offer assistance."

OSDE Statement:

"OSDE has a fully staffed Crisis Intervention Team, made up of several staff members from the Office of Student Development. It has responded to multiple school events this school year, and they have performed admirably. These positions are paid through state funds and federal grants thereby allowing the team to continue to respond in the future to crises across the state whenever needed."

"Oklahoma received $508,145,317 in federal funding for the current 2023-2024 school year. These figures do not include U.S. Department of Agriculture reimbursements for Oklahoma’s Child Nutrition Program."

-Dan Isett, OSDE