SJR 70 could create tough choices for Oklahoma schools

As the dust settles in the aftermath of Oklahoma’s teacher walkout, advocates are still trying to understand what’s been achieved and what still needs to be done to fully fund the state’s education responsibilities. Now another wrinkle could emerge from… Read more [More...]

Will the teacher raise be delayed by a veto petition?

[Note: The post has been edited to correct the information regarding HB 1024xx] On March 28th, just hours before Oklahoma Senators were to vote on pay raises for teachers and other employees funded by new taxes, a group calling themselves “Oklahoma… Read more [More...]

Fact Sheet: Is education fully funded?

Updated April 17th [Download this fact sheet as a pdf.] In March, lawmakers approved a package of funding increases that included pay raises for teachers (HB 1023xx), school support staff (HB 1026xx), and state workers (HB 1024xx), along with additional… Read more [More...]

The education funding package is a major step forward. There’s more work to do.

The Oklahoma Legislature last week passed a set of bills to provide pay raises to teachers, school support staff, and public employees funded primarily by a tax increase on tobacco, motor fuels, and gross production. Passage of the revenue bill… Read more [More...]

Bill Watch: Next week in #okleg | March 30, 2018

In our weekly Bill Watch post, we discuss what happened and what to look for in the bills we’re following most closely in the Oklahoma Legislature. See our advocacy alerts page for more ways to take action on these issues.… Read more [More...]

In a potential teacher walkout, communities must step up to fill the nutrition gap (Guest post: Brent Sadler)

Brent Sadler is Vice President of Community Investments for the Tulsa Area United Way. With the potential for a teacher walkout on the horizon, one of our greatest concerns is food insecurity for our most vulnerable citizens – our children. … Read more [More...]

Bill Watch: Next week in #okleg

This week we’re launching a new weekly update to our blog that previews some of the bills we’re watching in the Oklahoma Legislature over the next week. Throughout the week, we’ll continuing sharing advocacy alerts with ways that you can… Read more [More...]

State Funding Crisis and the Teacher Walkout: Resources & Information

Oklahoma teachers and school districts all over the state have shut down schools since April 2nd to advocate for better funding of education and other core state services. This page compiles resources to help you understand the context for Oklahoma’s… Read more [More...]

Oklahoma teachers’ real take home pay has shrunk for 10 out of the past 11 years

Most of the discussion on teacher pay in Oklahoma compared to other states has focused on the total compensation of teachers, since that’s what is typically used when making comparisons across states. As we recently discussed in our comparison of… Read more [More...]

Oklahoma has many good options to resolve the teacher walkout

The Oklahoma Education Association last week called on the Legislature to support an ambitious proposal to increase funding for public education and state services. The association, which represents nearly 40,000 teachers and school employees across the state, warned that “If… Read more [More...]