Restore Oklahoma Public Education

A Vote AGAINST
State Question 744
Is a Vote FOR
Oklahoma Public School
Students & Taxpayers
 As worded on the ballot, this
question is extremely deceitful

Monies involved are not identified - the

ballot states current legislated per pupil
spending of $42 (time frame?) is obsolete
and must be raised to the regional average

Wording could mislead voters to think more

money will mean increased student
performance
 What is per pupil
spending of $42?
OSDE published $7,615 annual average
spending per pupil

3 independent research groups (Steve

Anderson of OPAC, ROPE and Sunshine
Review) calculated annual average per pupil
spending between $10,000 to $11,000

Which is the correct figure?

GOOD NEWS: SQ 744
Will NOT Raise Taxes
BAD NEWS:
Money will be appropriated from funds
previously budgeted to other state agencies
and transferred directly to the OSDE right
off the top of the budget

There will be very little oversight or

transparency of use of funds
 But will Money from SQ744
Improve Our Kids’ Education?
History Says NO
According to a summary of NAEP* progress reports:

15 8TH GRADE TEST SCORES

OSDE’s 2009 Progress Report:

67% of ALL 8th grade students
National
Change in Test Points

considered “proficient” in reading

and only 61% “proficient” in math
8
ACT Inc: Oklahoma is below the
1
national average in ACT scores in
Oklahoma

English, Math and Science

-6

Math
1992-2009 Reading *NAEP: National Assessment of Educational Progress
1998-2009
Education Next: Number of
Oklahoma schools failing to
make AYP (Adequate Yearly
Progress) dropped by 85%
beginning in 2003-2004 - NOT
BECAUSE STUDENTS WERE
IMPROVING - because the
standards were lowered!

Education Next 2008: 3 states

- GA, OK and TN - expected
so little of students that they
received the grade of “F” for
the gap between reported
testing performance and NAEP
scores
 Since 1989 Spending has
gone up, but results have not

A graph of
Oklahoma per pupil
spending results
would look similar
to this graph of
Federal per pupil
spending versus
test scores
 More evidence of Lots of
Spending with Little Results

This graph
compares
changes in
Oklahoma
public
education
revenues
and ACT
scores
 How Much is Oklahoma Currently
Spending on Public Education?

It is hard to know for sure . . .

3 sites reporting OSDE spending show
different numbers (OpenBooks.org, National
Center for Educational Statistics, & OSDE)

OSDE reports spending numbers in their Fact

Sheet and in their “Investing in Oklahoma”
publication, but the numbers don’t match
?????????????
 Current Spending
according to the
2007-2008 OSDE Fact Sheet
OK Public Education receives a bit over 40% of total
state budget annually ($2.4 billion)

Local and county taxes add up to a bit over $1 billion

(unsure of money source)

State dedicated funds add up to $386 million (money

source?)

Federal funds - various grants & Title I funding - $471

million

TOTAL BUDGET: $4.3 billion or $6,780 per student

 WAIT!! OSDE forgot to include
some of the money
2009 Stimulus Funds (ARRA) “Investing in Oklahoma” p. 43
“more than” $120 million will be given through the OSDE to
local school boards
$167.5 million was given to the governor’s “State Fiscal
Stabilization Fund” to cover shortfalls in state appropriated
funding

Grants and funding from non-profits

i.e. $3.4 million to Enid Public Schools & countless grants to
schools like NW Classen by local notables & graduates

Contributions by associations with private and public higher

education
i.e. John Marshall received entire piano lab from UCO
 Don’t forget to include . . .

Site-specific fundraising by parents and

students

Lottery Appropriations
For FY 2009, public education received $31
million
 Where is the money going?

Show Me
the
MONEY!!

It’s there . . . why aren’t we seeing

results in student performance?
Perhaps the problem is WHERE the money is going . . .

Administration

Parents,
we need
copy paper

We have
to share
textbooks
Oklahoma Public School
Stats from OSDE
Approx. 634,251 students enrolled

1,845 public schools

83,471 public school employees (NOT

including those in OSDE or associated with
districts, i.e. custodians, program directors, etc.)

Average 344 students per school

1 employee per 7.6 students
 More Overhead Costs ...
427 OSDE employees draw a paycheck

Say the average pay is $20k each

427 x $20,000 = $8.5 million
Conservative Estimate of OSDE Annual Payroll
Teacher’s Retirement Board has 52 members

State Education Employees Group Insurance

Board has 178 employees

All these employees are paid to administer programs, but

have no direct input on a pupil’s educational experience
 Education . . . a Cartel?
In mid April 2010 New Jersey public school patrons defeated 58% of
school budgets with nearly double voter turnout.
WHY?
Because citizens are starting to see through the “but, it’s for the kids”
teacher’s union propaganda and realizing money is being misspent
THANKS IN PART TO . . .
new Governor Chris Christie and a film expose by Bob Bowden on NJ
public schools named, “The Cartel.”
Don’t Think Oklahoma is New Jersey?

Explore the number of audits being run on

Oklahoma school districts after the
egregious misuse of public funds brought to
public scrutiny from the Broken Arrow and
Skiatook school districts

Look at the number of Superintendents our

state employs compared to our K-12 public
school student population (520 per 634,251
kids or 1 in 1,220)

NOTE: Superintendents get pay raises even

when the state education budget is cut.
 Superintendent Salaries
Did you know . . . Okla-
homa has 37 districts
with <100 students?

The highest-paid
superintendent in
that group is paid
$93,002 in the
Kenwood district with
only 69 students.

With only 9 students,

the Plainview District
superintendent
receives the highest
pay-per-capita, or
$6,489.89 per child.
 ROPE’S POSITION

Oklahoma’s public education system

needs LESS money in the system
and MORE accountability for what
is already there.
Important Articles & Info
Available at www.restoreokpubliceducation.com

HOPE Isn’t Change or Vote NO on State

Question 744

Groups oppose Oklahoma education spending

initiative

State Would Pay Heavily for Education

Funding Plan

SQ 744 Fact Sheet (http://www.stop744.com/

factsheet/)
It IS “about our kids”
but Voting Yes on SQ744 will
NOT improve their education

Please educate yourself, friends and family

on this issue

Like New Jersey residents, it is time for

Oklahomans to show the OEA and NEA (the
backers of SQ744) that we’re finally on to
the “but it’s for the kids” game we’ve let
them them play so well all these years
 Restore Oklahoma
Public Education

www.restoreokpubliceducation.com