State Superintendent Lindel Fields, center, speaks at his first meeting with the Oklahoma State Board of Education on Thursday in Oklahoma City. (Photo by Nuria Martinez-Keel/Oklahoma Voice)
OKLAHOMA CITY — Thursday marked a new day for the Oklahoma State Board of Education, with two new board members and a new state superintendent at its meeting table.
The mood was lighter, and the board’s meeting room was, too. Window blinds were open in the usually crowded, cavelike corner of the Oklahoma State Department of Education. No line of protesters stretched to enter the building.
Portraits of the Oklahoma Educators Hall of Fame, which former state Superintendent Ryan Walters had removed, again lined a hallway leading to the meeting space. Walters resigned from office Sept. 30, and former CareerTech center administrator Lindel Fields has been appointed to finish his term.
In Walters’ absence, the board’s conversation centered on various school needs and accreditation issues. There was no talk of culture-war topics, which Walters made a frequent discussion point.
Board member Mike Tinney said he noticed “less tension” in the room.
“It seemed like everybody was just lighter, happier, more ready to get down to business,” Tinney said after the meeting.
Oklahoma State Board of Education member Mike Tinney speaks to the Senate Education Committee on May 20 at the state Capitol in Oklahoma City. (Photo by Nuria Martinez-Keel/Oklahoma Voice)
Walters’ relationship with the board became publicly acrimonious during his final months in office. Fields, though, already has established trust with the board members, Tinney said.
Thursday’s meeting was Fields’ first as state superintendent, a position that leads both the board and the state Education Department. New board members Brian Bobek, who served on the board from 2019 to 2022, and Wes Nofire also joined.
Much of the board’s action Thursday centered on suspensions and revocations of teaching licenses. Tinney and other board members complained last month during Walters’ final meeting that too many of these cases had not been resolved quickly enough.
After a lengthy executive session in private, the board agreed to not to revoke the teaching license of Edmond Public Schools teacher Regan Killackey and Ardmore City Schools teacher Alison Scott, whom Walters had targeted after taking issue with their social media posts about President Donald Trump.
However, the board voted to continue revocation proceedings for former Wewoka Middle School Principal Cody Barlow, who was acquitted of child molestation charges, and former Haworth Public Schools teacher Jonah Davis, whose second-degree rape charge was dismissed in McCurtain County District Court.
Board members decided it would be moot to dismiss the revocation case against former Ringling High School football coach Philip Koons, whose highly publicized criminal charge was dropped. Koons’ teaching license has expired, and he will have the opportunity to reapply for certification, said Fields’ chief of staff, Tom Newell.
Three other teachers had their revocation cases withdrawn, and two more received a formal reprimand in lieu of their teaching certifications being suspended. Eight others voluntarily surrendered their certifications.
Oklahoma State Board of Education members Wes Nofire, left, and Chris Van Denhende, right, attend a meeting Thursday in Oklahoma City. (Photo by Nuria Martinez-Keel/Oklahoma Voice)
The board voted to suspend the teaching licenses of six educators, including a man charged with committing a double homicide.
It also vacated the license revocation of Rick Dillinger, an Elk City Public Schools agriculture teacher, and scheduled his case for a new hearing. Dillinger never received proper notice of his original revocation hearing and therefore was unable to respond and present a defense, according to the board’s agenda.
These cases impact people’s lives, so addressing them was a top priority for Thursday’s meeting, said Tara Thompson, a spokesperson for the state Education Department.
A lengthy list of other procedural items also were approved, such as waivers granting districts flexibility with their textbook funds, library media centers and alternative education programs.
“There’s catching up to do on just about everything right now,” Thompson said after the meeting.
Other matters that the board traditionally would have accomplished before October are still delayed, particularly a vote on accreditation for the 2025-26 academic year. A school or district’s accreditation status outlines whether it committed any deficiencies in the previous year.
The board on Thursday considered assigning 16 school districts the status of “accredited with warning” for failing to correct deficiencies identified in prior years. Ultimately, board members tabled the matter until their next meeting Oct. 23.
There was one exception, though.
Bobek proposed approving the “accredited with warning” status for Western Heights Public Schools. “Accredited with warning” is an improvement for Western Heights, which has been under the more serious status of “accredited with probation” since 2021.
The rest of the board agreed with a unanimous vote.
“I want to applaud that district,” Bobek said during the meeting. “This is the first time they’re moving up. I applaud their leadership for what they’ve done.”
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