LINCOLN TO LOCAL
Is it OK to be OK? As the discussion surrounding Oklahoma public education continues, OKFB members can play a role in the future of education. s a statewide grassroots organization, Oklahoma Farm Bureau families are in every single Oklahoma county. The children and grandchildren of OKFB members attend schools from Guymon to Idabel, Cheyenne to Eufaula, and Hollis to Miami. Members across the state serve as superintendents, principals, counselors and school board members. As the state’s largest landowner organization, OKFB members pay taxes that help fund local school districts. The Oklahoma public education system is failing both students and and the state, according to data from the Oklahoma State Department of Education. Oklahoma education ranks in the mid to high 40s in nearly every category, putting the state—and its students—at the back of the pack.
Most of the rhetoric surrounding public education calls for a teacher salary increase. While that may be part of the plan, a teacher salary increase is not the plan. Education affects every single person in the state. A growing, thriving state economy relies upon an educated workforce. Is Oklahoma meeting that demand? Statistics show the opposite. What should Oklahoma education look like in 10 years? 20 years? 50 years? With no comprehensive plan from the governor or state leaders, should Farm Bureau be at the forefront of the education discussion? Below, find facts about the current condition of Oklahoma public education. Maybe it is time for OKFB members to not only call for a plan from state leaders, but also play a part in drafting the plan.
teachers
students Oklahoma spends
$8,633 per pupil
compared to an
$11,009
Oklahoma school districts has a four-day school week.
of students graduated high school in 2015. 12 — Oklahoma Country
LOMA DIP LOMA DIP LOMA DIP
Oklahomans have a college degree.
EMERGENCY TEACHER CERTIFICATES