OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — Tulsa Public School officials spoke at the September State Board of Education meeting and discuss their goals for improvement in education.
This is the first OSBOE meeting since the controversial accreditation vote in August. Included in the presentation were interim TPS Superintendent Dr. Ebony Johnson, TPS Board President Stacey Woolley, and other school officials.
Johnson led the charge as she presented TPS's literacy and education plan to the board. She first shared TPS's demographics and statistics, which she said are important factors to consider when reviewing these goals.
TPS currently enrolls 33,873 students throughout the district. 80% of the student's families are economically disadvantaged. 11% of students are considered gifted and talented. 13% of students have one or more disabilities and 36% are multilingual learners according to TPS data.
Johnson said using data allowed for a more precise plan to be created to make sure every student is addressed.
The main objectives of their plan focus on reading literacy, parental knowledge and support, and targeting the most in need schools.
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TPS plans to increase student intervention when reading levels are falling below grade level. It is partnering with education resources to offer multiple tools to students who need additional support.
The TPS school board and district leadership reviewed various websites and programs as well as specific reading teachers to put in schools that are under performing. The schools can request programs they think are going to benefit students the most.
Johnson said principals are the advocates for their schools and she welcomes conversations about what the schools need.
The second objective is parental support. TPS is going to be transparent about student progress and will continue to update the parent resource center.
She said parents are students' first teachers and it is important to get them informed and educated so they know how to foster learning.
- RELATED: 'Tulsa is uniquely bad': Ryan Walters holds press conference discussing Tulsa Public Schools
Lastly, she addressed concerns over TPS's internal controls and finances. Johnson said the financial office received spot training to flag any extra or unnecessary spending.
TPS says they are on the right path to success and already see numbers improving following pandemic levels.
State Superintendent Ryan Walters said he appreciates the work being done in the district, but said he was disappointed in the lack of numerical goals presented. Walters said he wanted to see more grade point averages goals and a clear timeline of when those can be achieved.
Johnson said the district will have a more up-to-date and accurate timeline after more testing data comes in. TPS Board President Stacey Woolley said they want to make sure the goals are realistic and achievable before they present those.
The meeting ended with both TPS and OSDE thanking each other for the discussion and they look forward to continuing to improve TPS.
To see State Superintendent Walter's budget proposal click here.
See more stories about TPS's continued conversations with the OSDE on the TPS Accreditation Fight webpage.
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