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Oklahoma City School Board Votes To End Classes 2 Days Early; Final Day May 25

Oklahoma City Public Schools Associate Superintendent Aurora Lora waits on Board of Education members to emerge from executive session during an April 25, 2016 meeting.
Emily Wendler
/
Oklahoma Public Media Exchange
Oklahoma City Public Schools Associate Superintendent Aurora Lora waits on Board of Education members to emerge from executive session during an April 25, 2016 meeting.

Oklahoma City Public Schools will end classes two days early this year. The final day for students will be Wednesday, May 25.

Updated 8:31 a.m.

The Board of Education voted 4-2 during a Wednesday breakfast meeting at the Faculty House in Oklahoma City to end the school year two days early as part of a cost-saving measure.

Teachers and other OKCPS district staff will attend professional development training through May 27, The Oklahoman's Tim Willert reports:

Scott Randall, who oversees capital projects, operations and information for Oklahoma City Public Schools, said the district will save about $20,000 per day to end the school year early.

. . .

Some board members, however, expressed concern that parents will have trouble finding day care on such short notice, and students who depend on school-provided meals for sustenance will not eat.

The rest of acting Superintendent Aurora Lora's $7 million plan is still up in the air. OKCPS spokesman Mark Myers said only the two-day student calendar was on Wednesday morning's meeting agenda.

Original Post

Oklahoma City Public Schools acting Superintendent Aurora Lora proposed another $7 million in budget cuts during a board meeting Monday night, bringing the total reduction to $30 million for the remainder of the fiscal year.

The plan includes consolidating two elementary schools, ending the school year two days early, and eliminating three top-level administrative positions.

The athletics and fine arts budget will also be cut by 25 percent, and she also recommended several selling several surplus properties the district owns.

“These are challenging times for us, and everyone is making difficult sacrifices to offset the state revenue failure,” Lora said in a statement. “Our first priority is our students, and while we are doing all we can to minimize the impact on them, cuts this drastic will no doubt impact the quality of their education experience.”

Lora said several Oklahoma City schools are operating with fewer than 350 students, and when square footage and space utilization are factored in, several were no longer efficient to run. Fifth and sixth grade students from Kaiser East will be moved to Kaiser Elementary.

“This will be a positive move for these students because they will now have access to a library and gym on the Kaiser Elementary campus,” Lora said.

She also recommended relocating Pre-K and kindergarten students from Greystone Lower Elementary to Greystone Upper Elementary School.

Lora said ending classes on Wednesday, May 25 would provide some savings and allow for staff development. The district also will cut 30 percent of the cabinet positions as part of an operational reorganization. The currently vacant Chief Operating Officer, Chief Information Officer, and Associate Superintendent positions won’t be filled, and those responsibilities will go to other staff members.

The Board of Education will vote on the proposal Wednesday during an 8 a.m. meeting at the Faculty House in Oklahoma City.

The board also engaged in a heated discussion with the leaders of KIPP Reach College Prep, a charter school that wants to expand in the district. Board members decided there was not enough information yet to make a decision, and postponed a vote to a later board meeting.

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Brian Hardzinski worked at KGOU from 2009 to 2017.
Emily Wendler was KOSU's education reporter from 2015 to 2019.
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