Gov. Kevin Stitt champions school choice at inaugural Oklahoma Charter Schools Conference

Yahoo

08-03-2025

Dozens of Oklahoma charter schools stakeholders heard Gov. Kevin Stitt during a conference on Friday champion school choice and emphasize the role quality education plays in the state's economic success.
The governor addressed a group of charter school administrators, board members and authorizers on Friday during the second day of the inaugural Oklahoma Charter Schools Conference.
He called education the driver of innovation, and the key to securing the American dream for the next generation.
"For decades, education in America was a system that prioritized bureaucracy over students. Well, not anymore," Stitt said. "You guys are leading the way in that we believe in parents having the power to make decisions about their child's education. A ZIP code should never determine a child's destiny."
Stitt touted the state's Parental Tax Credit program that nearly 8,000 Oklahoma families took advantage of for spring 2025. The program was approved by legislators in 2023, and was officially launched that December. Under the program, any family whose children attend private schools can claim between $5,000 and $7,500 annually, with priority given to families with household incomes of $150,000 or less.
"Rich people already have school choice," Stitt said. "They can send their kids anywhere they want. Now, every single family in Oklahoma has the ability to do the exact same thing."
More: Over 5,000 Oklahoma City Public Schools students doubled their projected growth in reading
A mandated report released by the Oklahoma Tax Commission revealed that about 21% of the tax credits issued as part of the program for spring 2025 went to families making more than $250,000.
During the conference, the governor criticized Tulsa Public Schools' decision to close its campuses for over 300 days during the height of COVID-19.
"These parents would tell me, they would say, 'Governor, it is not fair. I'm in Tulsa Public Schools, and my son, or my daughter, is not learning how to read right now on Zoom. We don't have good internet connection at the house. I have to go to work during the day,'" Stitt said.
These conversations struck a nerve, Stitt said, which is why he wanted open transfers. The Education Open Transfers Act went into effect in 2022, which took a month-long open transfer window that occurred in the summer and stretched to the entire calendar year.
During the 2021-22 school year, 59,755 Oklahoma students were enrolled in charter schools, according to a report by the Oklahoma State Department of Education. That's down nearly 27% from the previous academic year, but a massive increase from 6,923 students in 2011.
Stitt referenced a 2023 study from Harvard University, which ranked Oklahoma No. 6 among 36 states for the academic success of its charter schools, according to test score data from 2009 to 2019.
"You don't have the ability to bond like the public schools. Some of your facilities aren't quite as nice as the public schools. We're trying to narrow that gap for you in our Legislature," Stitt said. "If you know a Senate or a House member, I'll give you a whole list of things and call them to tell them to do OK? That's one of them."
"I believe that rising tides lift all boats. Charter schools and private schools are not a threat to public education. They actually encourage competition."
The governor also boasted the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to hear arguments on April 30 over a legal case that could lead to the establishment of the nation's first religious online charter school, based in Oklahoma.
In January, the court consolidated two petitions that had been filed, one by the Statewide Charter School Board and one by St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School, after the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled last year that the board's predecessor must rescind its contract with St. Isidore due to constitutional issues.
"Why does the government stand in the way to say that I can't put my faith in my children?" Stitt said. "I mean, it's just common sense. It's religious freedoms. Don't let people spin you into thinking this is somehow a controversial issue, because government should not stand in the way of businesses or excluding any kind of religious organizations from public programs just because they're faith based."
To close his speech, Stitt said the state is fighting for ensuring that every child has the best shot at success, and thanked the charter schools stakeholders for their work.
"If we continue down this path, expanding choice, driving innovation and putting parents in the driver's seat, Oklahoma will be the model for the entire nation," Stitt said. "We'll be the state where students are thriving, where businesses are flourishing and the American dream is alive and well."
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Gov. Kevin Stitt champions school choice at charter schools conference