OKLAHOMA CITY – Reps. Mark McBride, R-Moore, and Dick Lowe, R-Amber, today commented on a change to the method for scoring state academic tests they say was not communicated to statewide educators, parents or the public. McBride and Lowe, who serve as chair and vice chair of the House Appropriations & Budget Subcommittee on Education, said the change made it look as if student proficiency rates during the last school year have jumped when they cannot accurately be compared to the prior year. "The Oklahoma State Department of Education dropped the ball on telling school administrators, parents or anyone about the change in the way they would determine student performance on state tests," the lawmakers said in a joint statement. "This left districts shocked and surprised when they saw this year's scores, and it puts a false narrative out there. While we want to recognize the heroic efforts of our state educators, and we don't in any way want to diminish the incredible work they do in educating their students, the truth must be told." Oklahoma subject matter academic standards are updated every six years on a rotating schedule. Over 100 educators and other subject matter experts gather under the direction of the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) to accomplish the task, and the standards are ultimately approved by the Legislature. Once standards are updated in a particular subject, such as English language arts or math, testing companies rewrite state tests to match the new standards. OSDE then works with testing vendors to develop new cut scores and performance level descriptors (PLDs) to determine if a student is performing below basic, at basic, or is proficient or advanced. Because the tests, cut scores and PLDs change every six years per subject, the current year's test in that subject cannot accurately be compared to the prior year. This has been an ongoing concern with the state's A-F School Report Card, the lawmakers said. Normally, standards are only changed in one subject matter per year, but because of a delay due to the COVID pandemic, English language arts and math were updated on the same schedule. New tests were developed and administered for the 2023-2024 school year, and new cut scores and PLDs were determined. When schools received their results of last year's state tests, the number of students showing proficient or above in English language arts and math was inflated over the previous year, which McBride and Lowe said caused confusion. They said they are seeking guidance to explain how to interpret the test scores that they hope to share with school administrators statewide, which can then be shared with parents and other education stakeholders. "Had OSDE done its job and communicated this process clearly before these scores were released, we would not have this misunderstanding," McBride said. "I can only hope they do better in the future."
OKLAHOMA CITY – Rep. Justin Humphrey, R-Lane, today issued the following statements about the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA). "For the last year I have been working with whistleblowers from the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority to expose improper and possible criminal acts. These whistleblowers have documented an abundance of shady purchasing practices, including failure to use purchase orders and conducting business without proper contracts. They assisted me in putting all these improper purchases in files and on a thumb drive to give investigative authorities. Two of the whistleblowers alleged a top executive at OMMA was conspiring to do business with a company that employed that executive’s wife. Whistleblowers produced a tape of this executive, sounding aggressive and intimidating, telling employees there was nothing wrong with the business transactions but because of the employees, the transaction would be terminated and that their actions had been an embarrassment. The tape is very compelling and appears to be an admission of guilt. I do want to report that these two brave whistleblowers have been fired. "On approximately July 16, 2024, KFOR in Oklahoma City reported on an email shared with the station in which Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority Director Adria Berry said her agency was being forced to rift between 25 to 30 employees, 10% of the agency's staff. The director indicated the rift was the consequence of a reduction in fees. I met with many of the rifted employees who claimed OMMA doesn’t receive funding from fees. Instead, all their funding is appropriated through the state budget. I checked, and while OMMA was funded by fees when it was first created, this year the agency is funded solely through state budget appropriations by the Legislature. Additionally, the Legislature increased OMMA’s budget by several million dollars this fiscal year – from $37 million for Fiscal Year 24 to $41.9 million for FY25. It seems very clear Director Berry was not truthful in claiming she had to rift employees due to a reduction in fees. "These former employees maintain that one department received a significant portion of the firings. They provided verification this department consists of approximately 97% white employees, yet all of the employees let go from that department are black. I found this information extremely disturbing. They also reported the agency was paying instructors to teach employees Yoga and breathing techniques, including paying for mats and cleaning laundry, and that some employees are allowed company cars to drive long distances to come to work and only work a few short hours a day. These same employees declared the agency has remodeled top executives’ offices multiple times in their brief existence. Last week, these whistleblowers and I met with State Auditor Cindy Byrd and her staff to brief them on our concerns. We provided documentation to verify that our claims are warranted. "I submit that it is very possible OMMA fired experienced employees who were reporting wrongdoing. I want to encourage statewide elected officials to investigate why dozens of employees have been fired based on a lie, and I want to personally ask that this be made right."
Rep. Kevin Wallace, R-Wellston, today announced that the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency (LOFT) would begin an investigation into spending concerns regarding the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE). This investigation, approved by Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, and spearheaded by Wallace in his capacity as Chairman of LOFT, will focus on issues raised by both legislators and private citizens regarding alleged OSDE funding disbursement issues. "In my capacity as Chairman, I intend to have LOFT investigate funding disbursement concerns raised by both citizens and legislators in regard to funds earmarked to OSDE for specific purposes," Wallace said. "This isn’t about Superintendent Walters; this is about the transparency of a State Agency and getting answers for our constituents. When the Legislature approves funding for a specific purpose, it is incumbent on the agency to which those funds are allocated to spend them properly and in a timely manner. If there are issues with disbursements being made, that information should be communicated to the Legislature well before schools are incumbered. I look forward to using the processes and procedures available within LOFT to address the concerns that have been raised with OSDE funding, and will conduct a thorough, transparent investigation to provide answers to my fellow legislators and the citizens of Oklahoma." "LOFT is designed to ensure that taxpayer dollars are being spent responsibly by state agencies, making them the ideal entity to examine any concerns related to spending at OSDE," McCall said. "This investigation by LOFT allows us to address these concerns efficiently without the need for a costly special legislative session. I trust that Chairman Wallace, and LOFT, will conduct a comprehensive review that will provide clarity on the issues at OSDE and offer solutions to ensure that taxpayer funds are managed appropriately. I fully support this process. Additionally, my office will be sharing all relevant information with Attorney General Gentner Drummond regarding any potential violations of the Open Records or Open Meeting Acts by OSDE. We are committed to transparency, and the findings from this investigation will be made available to the public.” LOFT is a state agency in the legislative branch that assists the Oklahoma House and Senate. LOFT provides budgetary recommendations to the LOFT Oversight Committee for use in setting the funding of state government, higher education, and public schools.