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McIntosh County Democrat
This week, the House
has continued to focus on
bills in committee meet-
ings. When we weren’t in
committees or on the House
floor, I met with several
groups this week to discuss
various policy areas.
I had the opportunity to
meet with the Oklahoma
Municipal Power Authority
to discuss electrical power
and its process. OMPA’s
mission is to provide low
cost energy and services
to municipalities and help
create a competitive mar-
ket so Oklahoma’s citizens
have access to high quality,
low-cost energy.
The House Utility Com-
mittee addressed questions
regarding the cost of energy
and how municipalities can
be competitive to reduce
costs.
A few of my colleagues
and I met leaders of EPIC
Virtual Charter Schools to
discuss the impact of their
program. Rep. John Talley,
Rep. Darrel Fincher and I
met with the founder, Ben
Haress, along with their
superintendent, Scot Trow-
er, their lobbyist, Bobby
Stem, and their commu-
nity relations director, Todd
Thomsen. They outlined the
benefits of EPIC and how
they serve their students
and families.
EPIC is a useful option
for many families, but since
they receive state dollars,
their finances should be as
transparent as our tradi-
tional public schools.
On Monday morning, I
was invited to join Gover-
nor Stitt and a few other
legislators for breakfast at
the Governor’s Mansion. It
was great to visit with our
governor in a smaller set-
ting. We discussed public
and private school systems
and the benefits of four-
and five-day school weeks.
It’s important to under-
stand that both sched-
ules can be productive for
academic achievement.
Research indicates the big-
gest factor resulting in high
test scores is time spent on
task. This doesn’t necessar-
ily mean a set schedule. For
example, Cottonwood Pub-
lic School in Coal Coun-
ty has one of the highest
school ratings in the state,
and they only attend four
days a week.
With nearly 550 school
districts in our state, what
works for students in one
district may not work for
students in another dis-
trict.
The best way to help
our students succeed is
through a holistic approach
to education. Therapists on
staff can help find a child’s
pass the House floor, many
of them will go to the gover-
nor to be considered, since
they’ve already passed the
Senate process.
A number of bills have
the title struck, which
means that the details were
still being worked out when
the bill passed the cham-
ber’s floor. All bills that
passed with the title off will
return to their chamber of
origin for a vote on the final
language.
As the legislative pro-
cess continues, I’ll continue
to advocate for policy that
betters the lives of people
in District 15 and Oklaho-
mans across the state. I
encourage my constituents
in District 15 to reach out
to my office with questions
or concerns. Thank you for
the opportunity to serve!
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teach them. When a child’s
emotional needs are met,
they can truly focus on the
task at hand, which results
in better test scores.
Next Thursday is the
deadline to pass all remain-
ing Senate bills through
their House committees.
Bills must pass committee
before they can be heard
on the House floor. If they
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