The Greater Oklahoma City Chamber is taking the lead in a campaign urging Oklahoma City voters to approve a $955 million school bond issue for Oklahoma City Public Schools on Nov. 8, a vote Chamber officials and other supporters describe as transformational for students, the district and Oklahoma City. A resolution to move ahead with the school bond election was unanimously approved by the Oklahoma City School Board during their Aug. 15 special meeting. Through its “Invest in Our Future” campaign, the Chamber’s mission is to help Oklahoma City voters understand more fully the importance of passing the bond issue and how it will make positive impacts for decades to come. The Chamber has created a campaign website at okcfuture.com that is designed to provide a wealth of information for voters before they head to the polls on Nov. 8. “If you look at all the resources and opportunities available to students across the entire Oklahoma City metro, you will see there is a noticeable inequity in what kids in suburban districts get or have access to compared to what is available for students in the Oklahoma City Public Schools District. Don’t OKC students also deserve CHAMBER LEADING CAMPAIGN TO PASS SCHOOL BOND ISSUE FOR OKC PUBLIC SCHOOLS
access to the same kinds of resources and opportunities as their peers in other metro districts?” said Teresa Rose, Communities Foundation of Oklahoma executive director and Invest in Our Future campaign chair. The Oklahoma City Public Schools District is comprised of 66 schools, and the average age of those schools is 72 years. Nine of those schools are about 100 years old. Every school in the district will be impacted by the bond issue, protecting our community’s investment in our school infrastructure. “This bond election is an opportunity to do some transformational work,” said OKCPS Superintendent Dr. Sean McDaniel, who noted that not only will the bond issue address some facility deficiencies throughout the district, but it will also allow OKCPS to fund maintenance, technology and capital improvement projects that are sorely needed. There will also be an elevated focus on workforce development and college readiness, he said. “We know that pipelines into the workforce need to begin in Pre-K through 12th grade, and so what we want to do is expand opportunities for kids,” McDaniel said. Just as separate oversight committees have been created to oversee MAPS (Metropolitan Area Projects) projects as well as construction of the new county jail, OKCPS has adopted that same philosophy by creating its own oversight committee to ensure that the district is using the bond dollars as intended. The committee is made up of administration and community members. Construction projects could begin as early as 2023, and any new school project will be completed and slated to open for fall 2026.
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