StateImpact Oklahoma

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 tags

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 tags

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 in this episode: Social Media tags

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 tags

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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. 

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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? StateImpact spoke with parents, teachers, legisla...

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.

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.

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.