Superintendent vs. Superintendent
Mr. Walters, the previous state secretary of training who took over as Oklahoma’s training superintendent in January, has emerged as a provocative and divisive determine, waging cultural battles — typically on social media — and defending prayer in public faculty settings.
He extra lately targeted his consideration on Tulsa colleges, citing their low tutorial outcomes and an embezzlement case that he mentioned pointed to a tradition of economic mismanagement. He threatened to take over and even dissolve the district, which serves practically 34,000 college students, a majority of whom are Hispanic or Black.
He had referred to as for the elimination of the superintendent, Deborah A. Gist, whom he blamed for poor outcomes.
Dr. Gist, who introduced this week that she would step down with a purpose to keep away from a state takeover, mentioned in an interview on Thursday that she believed Mr. Walters was utilizing Tulsa as a “political football.”
She didn’t study that Tulsa was liable to being taken over, she mentioned, till Mr. Walters held a rally exterior the district’s workplaces this summer season, defending a Tulsa faculty board member who had prayed at a public highschool commencement. She mentioned she had met with Mr. Walters solely as soon as, in a gathering a couple of weeks in the past that lasted lower than half-hour.
A spokesman for the State Department of Education mentioned on Thursday that Dr. Gist was “misinformed” and that she had been “openly hostile” to Mr. Walters. Mr. Walters mentioned he was involved about low literacy charges and an absence of economic oversight within the district, amongst different issues, and gave Tulsa’s faculty board till the tip of the 12 months to point out progress.
Research Says: Takeovers Don’t Typically Work
If officers wish to assist Tulsa youngsters learn higher — an consequence sorely wanted in a district the place only one in 10 college students are studying proficiently — taking away native management and handing it over to the state will not be a slam dunk, in response to analysis.
“We find no evidence that this benefits student academic achievement outcomes, on average,” mentioned Beth Schueler, an assistant professor on the University of Virginia who has studied faculty district takeovers. She added that some proof means that “it can be disruptive to academic achievement in the early years of reform, especially in reading achievement.”
What’s Next: ‘We Need Results’
The faculty district has appointed an interim superintendent and will probably be required to make month-to-month updates to the state, together with on its funds.
Mr. Walters has demanded a fast turnaround, no simple feat in a district the place a majority of scholars come from economically deprived backgrounds. In 2022, simply 8 p.c of scholars had been proficient in math and 11 p.c had been proficient in English language arts. (Statewide, about 20 p.c of scholars had been proficient in math and studying final 12 months.)
“We need results,” Mr. Walters mentioned. “To be clear: If they don’t fix their problems, I will.”
Source: www.nytimes.com