A growing list of Oklahoma colleges and universities are offering their workers paid parental leave. But it’s still a minority. The momentum comes after Oklahoma mandated maternity leave for state employees and teachers last year. Lawmakers say it's time for the state to intervene for higher education workers. Mentioned in this episode: Social Medi…

Oklahoma schools use technology apps to manage everything from attendance to grades to parent communications. And now, a growing number of districts are updating hall passes to the digital age. They say the new tech is helping them curb behavioral issues that have spiked since the pandemic. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags…

He was 15 when he killed his sister’s abuser. Even after years of good conduct, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board has rejected recommending him for release. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tagsAf OPMX

As the war between Russia and Ukraine rages on, Ukrainian physicians are tending to a historic volume of patients with complex head and neck injuries from missile attacks and rocket blasts. OU Health is teaching some of these surgeons reconstructive techniques they can take back home. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags…

Many Southeast Oklahomans are gearing up to fight a proposed hydropower project that could displace hundreds of people. For this week's StateImpact Oklahoma in-depth, KOSU's Graycen Wheeler has more on the project and the response from residents and officials." Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags…

Oklahoma CareerTech oversees 29 technology centers across 60 campuses statewide. It takes about 500,000 yearly enrollments and offers courses to students in about 400 school districts and adults. And about 7,500 students are sitting on a waitlist to get in. To tackle the waitlist, the Oklahoma Legislature allocated $26.7 million in new one-time fun…

Recruiting long-term care CNAs can be challenging, and fighting consistent turnover is costly. But groups in Oklahoma are finding ways to invest in these workers’ education and futures. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tagsAf OPMX

Oklahoma students face many barriers to high school graduation, even more so since the pandemic. But educators at two Oklahoma City area high schools have teamed up with a new community organization to tackle root causes of student behavioral issues. Because of the efforts of educators and nonprofits, communities are finding solutions to help young…

The farther a woman has to travel to receive maternity care, the greater risk they have of maternal morbidity and adverse infant outcomes. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tagsAf OPMX

“Summer slide” is the phenomenon of students losing ground academically during the summer break. It usually refers to learning loss in reading and math, though other areas of child development can be affected, like behavior. On average, students lose about 20% of their school-year gains in reading and 27% in math. StateImpact visited two Oklahoma s…

Oklahoma nursing homes are preparing for staffing rules finalized in April by the Biden administration, meant to improve safety and quality of care in long-term care facilities. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tagsAf OPMX

Far out in the Pacific Ocean, the latest El Niño cycle is at an end, and La Niña is expected in the coming months. But what does that mean for Oklahoma’s weather? Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tagsAf OPMX

After a TikTok video went viral about water pollution in East Cache Creek, City of Lawton officials have explained their plan to restore water levels. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tagsAf OPMX

StateImpact education reporter Beth Wallis and health reporter Jillian Taylor talk with managing editor Logan Layden about some of this year's legislative highlights. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tagsAf OPMX

More than 600,000 Oklahomans on Medicaid are now seeing their care coordinated by private insurance companies. Proponents say the change incentivizes preventative care, and its rollout has been going well. But, it has caused problems for some Oklahomans on Medicaid and smaller providers. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags…

Keeping kids active and healthy can be an uphill battle, especially in the age of smartphones, video games and other distractions. A new volunteer initiative in Edmond is getting kids’ hearts pumping — and their wheels turning. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tagsAf OPMX

Statewide, Oklahoma public schools are experiencing a shortage of bus drivers — and they’re struggling to adapt. StateImpact analyzed every public school district in Oklahoma and found that of the 400-plus schools with hiring listings accessible on their websites or that answered a superintendent survey, over 40% showed open driver positions. About…

Most of Oklahoma’s Medicaid population is transitioning to managed care. This means that instead of the Oklahoma Health Care Authority paying providers directly, it’s paying private companies to coordinate some enrollees’ care. Proponents say the new system incentivizes better preventative care, which could cost the state less in the long run. Ment…

As a crisis continues on the U.S. Southern Border, Oklahoma lawmakers are among counterparts from about a dozen states taking things into their own hands. For StateImpact, Lionel Ramos reports on their efforts and the backlash they face from immigrant communities. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags…

In Tulsa, there are about 450 after-school programs at risk of shrinking to just 75 once ESSER funds are gone. One of those programs is an after-school gardening club at Tulsa Public Schools' Eugene Field Elementary. There, each participant gets a garden box to plan, decorate, plant and harvest from throughout the school year. Schools across the co…

Opill, which was approved by the FDA last July, is the nation’s first over-the-counter birth control pill, and it’s hitting pharmacy shelves now. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tagsAf OPMX

Any point on the globe can expect to see a total solar eclipse about once every 400 years. This Monday, it’s far southeast Oklahoma’s turn. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tagsAf OPMX

Lawmakers are at the halfway point in this year’s legislative session, and just a fraction of the education bills filed at the top of the session have survived big legislative deadlines. StateImpact’s Beth Wallis spoke with Oklahoma Voice education reporter Nuria Martinez-Keel about the bills that still remain on the legislature’s radar. Mentioned …

This legislative session, lawmakers are working with faculty from OU’s School of Social Work and Oklahoma Healthy Minds Policy Initiative, advocating for Oklahoma’s requirements to be reduced to 3,000 hours. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tagsAf OPMX

School support staff received a statewide pay raise after the 2018 Oklahoma Teacher Walkout, but while teacher pay remains a major legislative priority, support staff pay hasn’t. StateImpact’s Beth Wallis reports many paraprofessionals, who often provide critical support to students with disabilities, live paycheck to paycheck.…

An Oklahoma Watch investigation last year revealed a pervasive culture of harassment at an elite Oklahoma high school. StateImpact’s Beth Wallis spoke with Jennifer Palmer, the reporter behind the story, about a recent update: the agency responsible for addressing those issues failed to perform required inspections for 16 years.…

Abortion restrictions, the ongoing opioid crisis and access to mental healthcare are in focus this legislative session. Jillian Taylor is StateImpact Oklahoma’s health reporter, and spoke with managing editor Logan Layden about what to expect from lawmakers in 2024.Af OPMX

The state legislature is back in session, and there’s no hotter topic than education policy. StateImpact education reporter Beth Wallis talked with StateImpact managing editor Logan Layden about what to expect from lawmakers in 2024.Af OPMX

The Department of Education overpaid at least $290,000 in teacher bonuses and is working to claw back the money mere months after it was distributed. Nine teachers have been issued demands for repayment, and five additional teachers are under review.Af OPMX

At least 150 of Shawnee's 30,000 residents are homeless. And because of an ordinance enacted this month, life might be getting a little more difficult for some of the community’s most vulnerable residents.Af OPMX

No district in Oklahoma is under the State Board of Education’s microscope quite like Tulsa Public Schools. StateImpact’s Beth Wallis and OPMX’s Max Bryan have this update on how TPS’ state-mandated improvement plan is going so far and the work that lies ahead.Af OPMX

2023 is coming to a close, and it’s been an eventful year for StateImpact Oklahoma’s reporters. Managing editor Logan Layden talks with the team about highlights of this year and what to expect in 2024.Af OPMX

Over 300-thousand Oklahomans have lost SoonerCare coverage as state agencies remove ineligible people after a pandemic pause. StateImpact’s Jillian Taylor has more on how confusion around the Medicaid unwinding process is affecting members.Af OPMX

Severe weather damaged thousands of trees in the Tulsa area earlier this year. A million cubic yards of green waste was collected, and many trees were bent or broken. StateImpact’s Britny Cordera reports on how the community is coming together to regow the city’s uban tree canopy.Af OPMX

The new Killers of the Flower Moon movie is sparking a conversation about Oklahoma’s difficult history. But those conversations in schools are complicated by Oklahoma’s law limiting lessons that make students feel uncomfortable about their race or sex.Af OPMX

The science of reading is returning to the limelight, and Oklahoma schools and universities are using those techniques to teach literacy to the next generation.Af OPMX

Some Oklahoma churches are providing comprehensive sex ed to fill gaps in a state that doesn’t require it in schools.Af OPMX

A local non-profit is hosting rap battles and other events to advocate for mental health awareness in Oklahoma. The organization called SoulBody Cyphers is working to destigmatize conversations around mental health and cultivate a community of MC’s.Af OPMX

This month, millions of Americans will have to make student loan payments after a three-year pandemic era pause. But since 2020, there have been some big changes made to the repayment system, and StateImpact’s Beth Wallis is here to break it down.Af OPMX

After its recent FDA approval, the CDC recommended everyone six months and older get an updated COVID vaccine. But getting it hasn’t been easy for some Oklahomans, with appointments canceled day of due to insurance snags and issues finding a place that carries it.Af OPMX

Monarch butterflies, like many insects and birds, migrate twice a year, in the spring and in the fall. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, before the weather gets cold, monarchs travel over two thousand miles from North America to central Mexico to hibernate.Af OPMX

Earlier this month, State Superintendent Ryan Walters announced a partnership with conservative nonprofit media group, PragerU. Existing PragerU Kids content now populates the state’s social studies website, and Walters says PragerU and the State Department of Education are collaborating on an Oklahoma-specific curriculum. So what is PragerU? State…

A bill in Oklahoma banning all forms of gender-affirming care for trans youth was paused by Oklahoma’s attorney general amid litigation from the ACLU of Oklahoma. Now, trans youth and providers are coping with all the uncertainty.Af OPMX

More than 250 volunteers collected temperature and air quality data around Oklahoma City through a community science project in August to study urban heat islands. StateImpact’s Britny Cordera reports the NOAA funded project could help the city prepare for extreme heat.Af OPMX

Faced with the dangers of excessive heat, educators around the state are getting creative to keep kids safe and cool while still providing recreational opportunities.Af OPMX

StateImpact Oklahoma’s health coverage informed listeners through the COVID-19 pandemic, the state’s voter-mandated expansion of Medicaid, and the opioid epidemic. StateImpact managing editor Logan Layden introduces us to Jillian Taylor, the new reporter continuing the work to tell health stories that impact you, your community and the entire state…

Tulsa’s North Peoria Church of Christ used to call Greenwood home. That was before I-244 displaced it and cut through historic Black Wall Street. StateImpact’s Britny Cordera talked with State Rep. Regina Goodwin, who represents the area and attends the church, about its legacy and a planning grant to study the removal of the expressway.…

Next Thursday, the State Board of Education will consider changing the accreditation status of the state’s largest school district, Tulsa Public Schools. This comes after over a year of remarks from State Superintendent Ryan Walters targeting the district. StateImpact’s Beth Wallis and Public Radio Tulsa's Max Bryan break down what’s behind the bat…

Rebecca Jim owns a mile and a half acreage just north of Vinita, Oklahoma, at the northern edge of the Cherokee Nation. She inherited this land from her family who used to ranch cattle here. She said her land is longer than it is wide, perfect for bringing back prairie chickens. She is turning two fields on the land into prairies to bring back prai…

Signing bonuses of as much as $50,000 are what Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters said is needed to attract new and retired teachers to the classroom.That’s also what makes his new bonus plan a risky policy. StateImpact's Beth Wallis teamed up with Oklahoma Watch education reporter Jennifer Palmer for this story.…