StateImpact Oklahoma

A program promising much-needed mental health professionals for rural Oklahoma schools is on the chopping block of funding cuts from the Trump Administration. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

A program reimbursing nonprofits with state money to support abortion alternatives has expanded, despite past challenges with dollars reaching the women it hopes to serve. Meet the new organization that plans to distribute funds to pregnancy resource centers and churches. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

The 2025 legislative session is over. Our StateImpact Oklahoma reporters were following several bills and issues related to education, healthcare and energy policy. StateImpact managing editor Logan Layden looks back with them as they discuss the highlights. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

Lawmakers attempted to secure more financial support for Oklahoma foster parents this legislative session. While they weren't successful, other resources are available. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

In south central Oklahoma, a rural school is having to consider what more than a hundred Oklahoma districts have before it when enrollment drops below sustainability: annexation. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

More than a fifth of Indigenous Oklahomans are counted by the U.S. Census Bureau as uninsured – including those who solely use the Indian Health Service as health care coverage. For some, having no insurance can be costly. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

Legislative efforts to reform the judicial selection process in Oklahoma have gone on for the better part of the last decade. And this year, just like in years past, they’ve failed, even with the support of the governor. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

Norman is a nexus of national weather and climate science. But swift layoffs and deep budget cuts could disband it and other organizations nationwide. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board v. Drummond case next week.  The case will decide whether the St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School can be a state-funded public school. The lawsuit was brought by Oklahoma’s attorney general against the state charter school board that approved St. Isidore’s application. Mentioned in this e...

As the 30th anniversary of the Oklahoma City Bombing approaches, a group of young musicians is connecting with the tragedy through performing themes of resilience. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

April 19, 2025 marks 30 years since a bomb destroyed the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City. 168 people were killed — including 19 children — and hundreds more were injured. It forever shaped our community. "That April Morning: The Oklahoma City Bombing" is a production of KOSU, KGOU, StateImpact Oklahoma and our partners with the Oklahoma Public Media Exchange.

Since Oklahoma’s near-total abortion ban went into effect, providers and thousands of people who have left the state to receive care have experienced its impacts. A new group hopes to educate Oklahomans on those continued effects by bringing people from all walks of life together to have conversations about reproductive health care. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

Thanks to a new law, schools across the state are now required to allow off-campus religious instruction during elective courses. Those courses are currently operational or in the final stages of development in at least six Oklahoma schools. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

A report released this month states at least a third of the nation’s birds are in peril. Local community scientists are contributing information critical to understanding the decline. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

Last week, wildfires raged across Oklahoma, claiming thousands of acres of land and hundreds of buildings. KOSU’s Sarah Liese reports for StateImpact that the flames also destroyed a historic church in Kiowa County, leaving a congregation to rebuild. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

New Oklahoma Human Services rules approved this year require non-accredited five-star child care programs to provide proof of an accreditation application submission by April 10 and get nationally accredited by Sept. 1 — or face a star reduction tied to their reimbursements. Providers said the timeframe to comply with a process that typically takes one to two years is too short and could...

A book coming out next month argues the way states perform executions is inhumane. KOSU's Sierra Pfeifer talks to University of Richmond Professor Corinna Barrett Lain about her new book Secrets of the Killing State: The Untold Story of Lethal Injection , and Oklahoma's role in how the condemned are executed for StateImpact. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

The state expected millions of dollars to plug wells abandoned by their owners. But the funds are in limbo under a new federal administration. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

Over the next four years, the Well Done Foundation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife will plug more than 100 orphan wells on public land. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

ECU debuted its first-ever doctoral program this January, which focuses on administrative issues in rural education. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

None of Oklahoma’s rural counties have enough primary and mental health care providers. A federal grant is training University of Oklahoma physician assistant students to serve rural communities in both areas.  Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

Oklahomans are using more and more electricity. But as energy companies meet with landowners to build the needed infrastructure, opposition is growing. KOSU’sAnna Pope reports for StateImpact on one transmission project troubling Oklahomans. This story was co-reported by KOSU’s Graycen Wheeler. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

Nationally, college enrollment has declined over the last 15 years. But Oklahoma’s land-grant institutions managed to avoid the post-COVID fallout and are now at all-time highs. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

Change and uncertainty abound as 2025 begins. But you have the StateImpact Oklahoma team to guide you through and keep you informed about the seismic shifts coming in education policy, healthcare and the climate crisis. StateImpact managing editor Logan Layden and the StateImpact reporters to preview what’s to come. Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags

More students with disabilities than ever before are spending at least 80 percent of their school day in general education classrooms. Federal data show that share of students has more than doubled in the last 35 years. But how are teacher prep programs at universities changing to meet the needs of more inclusive classrooms? Mentioned in this episode: Social Media tags