In a state where public school enrollment has plateaued and competition from private school vouchers is on the rise, some Oklahoma districts are finding ways to grow.
In Tuskahoma, a tiny dependent district without a high school, Superintendent Jonathan Freeman is betting on enrichment to draw students. The school added music lessons, e-sports, a fishing club, dance, aviation, an after-school program—and even daycare for toddlers.
“We’re so rural, there’s just not a lot here,” Freeman said.
But the strategy worked. Enrollment climbed from 65 to 108 students in just more than a year.
Norman Public Schools took a different approach: a dedicated aviation and aerospace academy helped boost their student count by 361 this year, reaching more than 16,000. The district will also open a childcare center for employees.
Statewide, enrollment dropped 0.25% from last year to 697,358. Since its 2019 peak, Oklahoma’s public school population has shrunk by nearly 6,300 students.
The demographic dip is national, but the pandemic accelerated the shift. And for many states, including Oklahoma, no one’s sure exactly where all the students went.
Jennifer Palmer has the story and the data here.
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Oklahoma Christian Chases Frisbee, Annoys Everyone
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On this date in 1949, a major tornado outbreak swept across Oklahoma, including an F4 tornado in Blaine County that killed one person and injured several others.
Ciao for now,
Ted Streuli
Executive Director, Oklahoma Watch
tstreuli@oklahomawatch.org
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