Back-door consolidation

The Alva Review-Courier reported yesterday ('OEA renews push for forced rural school consolidation'): "A state teacher's union is renewing its push for 'back-door consolidation' of rural schools, a state legislative leader warned today."

Kids deserve the choice to 'get away from it'

Two stories on the front page of the state's largest newspaper today help to explain why so many parents have lost confidence in Oklahoma's public schools.

In one story ('Providing direction for youths at risk'), The Oklahoman reports that

Miles recently graduated high school and McPherson and Ray go to different schools. All three said gangs, drugs and violence are problems at school.

Out of school "you know the areas to stay away from," McPherson said. "But at school, everything is so compact, you can't get away from it."

"This kid brought a Hefty bag to school of drugs, and he was just handing them out," Ray said. "You want to tell, but you look around and see all the gang members and you don't."

Another front-page story informs us that a former Harrah Junior High School librarian is accused of having sex with a 15-year-old student.

The resulting investigation led Detective Dawn Davis to conclude [the librarian], a married mother of two, is a "promiscuous woman (who) seems to befriend the young men of her church and school," according to her affidavit. [She] groomed a handful of students by getting them out of class early and buying them things, Davis wrote. She regularly communicated with them in text messages and on MySpace.com, Davis wrote. Investigators looked into reports [she] had sex with at least five other students and one former student, but none of them confirmed any inappropriate contact with her, the detective's affidavit states.

You may recall that a recent analysis by the Associated Press found that "sexual conduct plagues U.S. schools" and suggests that sexual misconduct among male schoolteachers is at least as common as among male priests. A 2004 U.S. Department of Education study found that one in 10 public school students is sexually harassed or abused by a teacher or other school employee at some point between kindergarten and 12th grade.

School choice on C-SPAN

Tomorrow morning from 7:30 to 8:30 CST, C-SPAN's Washington Journal will feature a segment called "African Americans and School Choice." Be sure to watch or, better yet, call in and make your voice heard.

'Enough is never enough'

The state's largest school-employee labor union is planning an initiative petition to amend the state constitution, The Oklahoman reports today. The union wants to require (you'll never guess!) more spending for public schools.

Rural lawmaker Jeff Hickman points out that the union's plan will result in the forced consolidation of rural schools. Budget leader Tad Jones adds: "The OEA's proposed constitutional amendment would result in at least one of the following outcomes: a massive tax increase at a time when gas prices are skyrocketing, consolidation of schools, or devastating cuts to vital government services such as roads and law enforcement."

OCPA has pointed out that Oklahoma taxpayers are already paying Casady prices for our public schools. Union officials know this but they don't want you to know it, which is why they refuse to debate OCPA on the matter. Not that it matters how much money we give them. As the state's largest newspaper has pointed out, "for the OEA, enough is never enough."

I don't expect the union's effort will be any more successful than their recent frivolous lawsuit (tax hikes are an absolute nonstarter, and you can ask Gov. Largent how popular rural school consolidation is), but it's worth keeping an eye on.

Virtual schooling in Oklahoma

In a letter to the editor published today in The Oklahoman, Jeff Elliott, president of Advanced Academics Inc., points out the benefits on online education. He writes:

"Small problem: Tiny schools face big challenges" (Our Views, July 7) states that rising costs may force up to 50 small school districts to consolidate in the coming year. Smaller school districts also face ongoing challenges in attracting and retaining quality instructors, as well as offering a wide selection of courses. One solution to these issues is online learning. As noted in "More state students are finding answers to their educational needs online" (news feature, June 30), growing numbers of Oklahoma public high school students already receive a flexible, quality education through virtual schools.

Virtual schools offer benefits to students, teachers and administrators. Students enrolled in virtual schools receive personalized attention from state-certified teachers and can concentrate their time on those areas in which they need the most help. Students enjoy robust course offerings, including electives and college preparatory classes that their local school may not offer. For teachers, virtual schools let them work one-on-one with students and customize the delivery of course material to each student's individual learning style, while the cost advantages of online education let administrators provide this option to their district at no additional cost.

Virtual schools aren't the answer for every district's problems. However, online learning is one way that smaller districts can offer a wide selection of academically rigorous courses within their budgetary constraints.

McCain in the lions' den

"After decades of hearing the same big promises from the public education establishment, and seeing the same poor results, it is surely time to shake off the old ways and to demand new reforms," John McCain told the NAACP this morning.

McCain's education plan is available here.

McCain could win Hispanic votes ...

... by emphasizing school choice, Clint Bolick writes today in The Wall Street Journal.

No more gimmicks

"The time has come to take the education of our children away from politicians and their gimmicks and give educational choice to parents," Phillip W. Smith writes in the Muskogee Phoenix. "Universal school choice is the one and only needed goal."

School deregulation bill fizzles in '08

OCPA intern Fletcher Daniels sends along this analysis of a good piece of legislation which, unfortunately, didn't make it to the governor's desk this year:

A Senate bill considered by Oklahoma legislators in the last legislative session would have taken steps towards creating alternatives in education through the establishment of charter districts. After House approval, the bill was narrowly defeated upon its return to the Senate.

SB 2100, authored by Senator John Ford (R-Bartlesville), intended to ease the financial burden placed on local school districts by legislative mandates that require compliance but allocate no funds to the districts to assist in this compliance. The bill would have created a pilot program designating 10 school districts across the state as charter districts. A charter district is one within which public charter schools may be set up through contract with the local school board. These schools would operate in compliance with all federal, state, and local regulations required under the Oklahoma Charter Schools Act, but would otherwise be exempt from "all statutes and rules relating to schools, boards of education, and school districts."

The pilot program also would have allowed any public school in the district to opt out of many of these unfunded mandates. Senator Ford proposed the bill in light of complaints by school board members and superintendents across the state concerning such mandates, and because he believes that locally elected school boards are better than state legislators when it comes to making good decisions concerning the education of the children in their districts.

School choice for me ...

... because I can afford it.

One way to help autistic children

Writing today in the Muskogee Phoenix, economist Joshua Hall recommends school choice.

Who you callin' free?

Apparently some education reporters still don't understand what a free market is.

Not to worry. One suspects many of them will learn soon enough.

Quote of the day

"If the schools are not teaching children, then something has to happen. We cannot continue to pour money into schools that won’t teach. As opposed to subsidizing failure, we ought to free the parent to make a different choice. It could be a public school. It could be a charter school. It could be a tutorial. It could be anything other than the status quo."

--George W. Bush, on the campaign trail in 2000