Tulsa Public Schools’ accreditation affirmed again as district reaches calmer waters
Tulsa Public Schools officials walked out of the Oklahoma State Department of Education to rounds of applause on Thursday, as a yearlong effort to prevent a district takeover appeared to have reached a conclusion.
Superintendent Ebony Johnson waved goodbye to agency employees and members of the public who filled the department's hallways for an Oklahoma State Board of Education meeting .
Johnson and other TPS leaders had become regular fixtures in the building, returning every month for the past year to present to the board about their district's progress. Their presentation Thursday will be their last monthly report at a state board meeting, marking the end of a turbulent chapter that began more than a year ago.
"It feels like an affirmation that we've been doing the right thing for our young people and our families, our teachers and our staff," Johnson said while walking to her car before the hour-and-a-half drive back to Tulsa.
Her remarks to the board made it clear the job of improving Tulsa schools isn't finished yet, as she outlined plans to combat chronic absenteeism, secure financial procedures, accelerate student learning and improve struggling schools.
But, the tone of the meeting was a night-and-day difference from the existential crisis Tulsa faced 12 months ago.
At that time, the state Department of Education threatened a takeover of Tulsa, the state's largest school district, in light of poor academic performance and a financial scandal .
Former Tulsa Superintendent Deborah Gist resigned in hopes of preventing such a drastic outcome. Johnson, the district's chief academic officer, stepped into the superintendent role in the interim before she was later hired permanently .
The state Board of Education at the time approved Tulsa's accreditation status, which defines its ability to operate as an independent district, on the condition that the district's reading scores improve by at least 5%, that its failing schools show improvement in state evaluations, that all teaching staff be trained in the science of reading and that it improve its internal financial controls.
The board also required a presentation every month from district leaders for an update on their progress.
The school district has indicated it could meet all of the state board's demands. Tulsa completed science of reading training for all teachers and administrators. It hired an internal auditor to its staff to review financial procedures.
New state report cards with grades for each public school haven't come out yet, but the district announced 16 of its schools already have shown necessary progress to shed a federal low-performing label.
This summer, Tulsa announced it achieved an overall 5% improvement in reading scores on spring state tests.
Relieving district administrators of the monthly trek to Oklahoma City would seem a final check mark on the list.
However, questions hover around the true extent of reading improvement, not only in Tulsa but statewide. State officials quietly lowered the bar for students to reach a proficient score on reading and math tests this year, creating the illusion of dramatic academic growth statewide. Internal agency documents, which Oklahoma Voice obtained, indicate actual progress across the state has been stagnant.
Regardless, state Superintendent Ryan Walters said he is confident Tulsa is in a better place with Johnson at the helm. He recommended that Thursday's meeting be her final monthly presentation.
State and Tulsa officials have been in touch weekly, he said, and the district provides "everything that we ask of them." That communication will continue, Walters said, but he suggested their attendance at board meetings is no longer necessary. The board agreed with a unanimous vote.
"I have got tremendous confidence in the leadership team there, the direction there," Walters told the board members on Thursday. "I think we can move into a stage that's much more informal."
The board then approved accreditation for Tulsa and all other districts in the state.
This year, Tulsa will maintain its status of "accredited with deficiencies," which is defined as failing to meet one or more school requirements in a way that doesn't seriously detract from the quality of its educational program. Another 420 schools and districts have the same designation, and 1,981 others have no deficiencies, state officials said.
Nine school districts were accredited "with warning," indicating they have deficiencies that seriously detract from their educational quality.
Four districts — Billings, Optima, Straight and Western Heights — have been placed on probation, the lowest possible designation short of being shut down. Education Department documents show all four districts had financial reporting issues, among other concerns.
State officials noted that Western Heights Public Schools is correcting IRS filing challenges and has "significantly improved" since it first landed on probation in 2021.
Tulsa's accreditation status is consistent with its label last year — this time without any stipulations or storm clouds.
Johnson said she imagined no other outcome than to reach this more-stable point.
"Absolutely it was not going to be anything other than this. It's the way I lead," she said. "My priority is to make sure that our students get all the resources that they need, our teachers are supported (and) our support staff, and then my team continues to lead in the most awesome way. And so, absolutely, we were going to get here."
Oklahoma Voice is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oklahoma Voice maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Janelle Stecklein for questions: . Follow Oklahoma Voice on Facebook and Twitter .
