Parent Voice Oklahoma thanks State Board of Education for support of Public Charter Schools
Published: April 3rd, 2021
Great Seal of the State of Oklahoma.
Flag of Oklahoma. The state of Oklahoma is becoming steadily more open to parental choice in education, including support of public charter schools.
CapitolBeatOK is an independent, non-partisan news service based in Oklahoma City.
The City Sentinel is a locally-owned, independent newspaper based in Oklahoma City.
OWASSO – Parents helping to lead Parent Voice Oklahoma (PVO) organizations thanked the Oklahoma State Board of Education for approving a settlement that increases funding for charter schools.
In a press release sent to The City Sentinel, CapitolBeatOK.com and other news organizations, Leaders at PVO said the board’s decision to support charter schools is a win for parents looking for more choices in education.
“Too often, our system of public education fails to offer parents choices, is not responsive to their needs and ignores their preferences entirely,” said Jennifer Johnson, a PVO advocate from Owasso.
“One bright spot in that system has been charter schools, which offer parents and students greater options in curricula and format. We are thrilled to see the Board of Education vote to provide these schools with more resources and support.”
Dana Walsh, also with PVO, said she saw the Board’s March 26 decision as part of a larger trend towards positive reform.
“For a long time, we’ve had an education establishment that viewed itself as the only game in town, and the attitude has been ‘my way or the highway,’” said Walsh.
“That served their interests and bottom line, but it wasn’t a system that worked for parents or students. Now that’s changing. We have a governor who is listening to parents and a board that is listening to parents. We want choices; we want input; we want a seat at the table. This decision by the board is another sign that the era of special interests ruling public education is over.”
For more information on Parent Voice Oklahoma, go to parentvoiceok.org.
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