2025 OASA Mid-Winter and Legislative Conference Update

CCOSA hosted hundreds of school officials and policymakers at their annual policy forum.

By Dr. Jeanene Barnett, Director of Policy, Research, and TLE

OASA welcomed state leaders from all branches of government to the 2025 OASA Mid-Winter and Legislative Conference at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Oklahoma City on January 22-23.

CCOSA/OASA Executive Director Dr. Pam Deering opened the first halfday of the conference, then turned the program over to OASA President Scott Farmer, Superintendent, Fort Gibson Public Schools, who welcomed Secretary of Education Nellie Tayloe Sanders. Secretary Sanders introduced First Lady Sarah Stitt, who brought a message of hope and resilience. The First Lady spoke of her appreciation for the hard work of the public school administrators in the room. After the conference, she shared a note of thanks with Dr. Deering and the CCOSA organization for welcoming her and offered to help support CCOSA members as we strive to create safe, healthy environments for Oklahoma students to succeed.

Legislative insights from Speaker of the House Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow, and Senate Appropriations Chair Chuck Hall, R-Perry, followed. The afternoon ended with a presentation from Dr. Sara Doutre on the federal attendees. at the conference. funding formula for IDEA and remarks from the new leader of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, Chancellor Sean Burrage.

Piedmont Superintendent Dr.

Dr. Deering opened the second day of the conference with comments about what CCOSA provides for its members through professional learning opportunities, advocacy, and membership benefits.

Scott Farmer then introduced and welcomed Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond to provide opening remarks. Attorney General Drummond reminded OASA members that he had been with them at the same conference just two years before and reinforced his love and respect for the work of those who serve in Oklahoma public schools.

Next, President Farmer reviewed the CCOSA information sheets provided for each participant to help guide conversations with legislators and community members:

■ Access the OASA Talking Points here

■ Access the CCOSA Administrative Costs Fact Sheet here

Tara Thomas, AASA Government Affairs Manager, brought an update on federal legislation but cautioned that everything is in so much transition and is moving so quickly it is difficult to determine anything with certainty. She identified areas that the new administration may work on in the first 100 days: Senate confirmations for Cabinet posts, raising the debt ceiling, proposing possible messaging bills (anti-woke, parental rights, etc.), unveiling reconciliation plans, and passing FY25 funding.

Afterwards, conferees heard from the Oklahoma Legislative education leadership: Senate Education Chair Adam Pugh, R-Edmond; House Education Chair Dick Lowe, R-Amber; and House Education Oversight Chair Dell Kerbs, R-Shawnee.

Following this robust and straightforward panel discussion, CCOSA/OROS Legislative Consultant Megan Benn gave a thorough overview of the 448 current bills on the 2025 CCOSA Tracking List. Sprinkled across all of the bills filed this year (over 3,100 – a new record), several address the teacher shortage, some change the timeline for elections for local Boards of Education, and one focuses on dyscalculia and introduces help and support for students to develop grade-level math skills.

OASA Policy and Advocacy

Chair Dr. Mike Simpson, Guthrie Superintendent, closed out the conference with a review of the OASA Guiding Principles and OASA Legislative Goals. You can access those documents here.

Overall, the 2025 OASA Legislative and Mid-Winter Conference concluded with another successful year. ■

More Money Is Not Enough

Dr. Sara Doutre’s presentation revealed systemic inequities in federal special education funding.

Dr. Sara Doutre, Senior Program Associate for WestED, shared research about the inequities in the formula for federal special education funding at the 2025 OASA Mid-Winter and Legislative Conference. Her presentation, “More Money Is Not Enough: The Case for Reconsidering Federal Special Education Funding Formulas,” examined the disparities in federal funding allocations under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Despite intentions to distribute funds equitably, the current formula results in significant per-child funding differences among states. For instance, in FY2021, Wyoming received approximately $3,215 per child, while Nevada received about $1,835 and Oklahoma received $1,780. The difference in IDEA funding per child receiving special education services between Oklahoma and Wyoming is -$1,435. Doutre and other authors of a Brookings article suggest that merely increasing federal appropriations without revising the funding formula may perpetuate or even exacerbate these inequities. They advocate for a comprehensive reevaluation of the allocation methodology to ensure a more equitable distribution of resources across states. You can access Dr. Doutre’s presentation here, and the Brookings article that provides more details about the research findings here