Superintendent Hofmeister announces winner of ‘License to Educate’ contest

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2018 License to Educate License Plate Contest Winner, designed by Latta High School's Sarah Skaggs. Proceeds of the specialty plate will benefit teacher recruitment. 

OKLAHOMA CITY (Nov. 1, 2017) – In an online vote, Oklahomans selected a Latta High School student’s watercolor painting of a vintage schoolhouse at sunrise as the design of a new specialty license plate to support education, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister announced Wednesday.

Sarah Skaggs, a high school junior, based her artwork on the Jones Chapel Schoolhouse in Wintersmith Park in Ada. The historic one-room structure was built in 1907 – the same year Oklahoma became a state.

“The early schoolhouse is a strong visual reminder of Oklahoma’s time-honored commitment to free public schools for all children, which is enshrined in our state constitution,” Hofmeister said. “The results of the online vote demonstrate the enduring power of this image of a rural institution on the prairie. Sarah tapped into an inspiring subject and executed it beautifully.” 

The Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) received nearly 800 entries from students across the state for its License to Educate art contest, then narrowed the entries to six finalists. A total of 16,549 votes were cast online in the two-week contest period.

Sarah, who plans to pursue a career in forensic art, created several versions of her painting before she submitted it to the contest.

“This was not my first draft, trust me. It takes time to be better, and I learned it won’t always be right the first time,” she said.

Beginning today, the specialty tag (plate code LE) is available for pre-order at tag agencies across the state or by visiting here. 

The license plate sells for $35 (plus an additional $3 mailing fee), with most of the proceeds helping to recruit and retain teachers in Oklahoma. The Oklahoma Tax Commission must receive 100 pre-orders by May 1, 2018, to put it into production. The plate is the result of a recent state law authored by Sen. Stephanie Bice and Rep. Ryan Martinez aimed at curbing the state’s teacher shortage.

Jenny Salter, who has taught art at Latta for seven years, urged Sarah to enter the contest because she thought her 11th-grade student had the talent and determination to create a work of art that would resonate among voters.

“Sarah takes her art extremely seriously; she works on every piece with time and care, often undertaking project ideas that require meticulous effort,” Salter said. “I cannot wait to see how she uses her talents in the future. She truly has a gift.”

In addition to working with watercolors and graphite, Sarah is the graphic design editor of the school’s online newspaper.

Hofmeister applauded the efforts of participants.

“It was such a delight to see hundreds of pieces of original student artwork flood into the Oklahoma State Department of Education,” Hofmeister said. “Thank you to all of the students who shared their creations and every teacher who provided encouragement and guidance.”

For more information on the License to Educate contest, visit http://sde.ok.gov/sde/licensetoeducate

State Releases A-F Report Cards: Sand Springs Schools average B-

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By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The State Board of Education released the 2016 A-F Report Cards for all public schools in Oklahoma Thursday, and the average Sand Springs Public School received an 80.87%, or a B-. 

"The report cards released today are likely to be the last using the A-F calculations that have been in effect since the 2012-2013 school year. Under the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and a new state law, House Bill 3218, the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) is developing a new school accountability calculation to take effect in the 2017-2018 school year," says a press release from the Department of Education. 

“Our sights are fixed on a stronger school accountability system that will be a more meaningful and accurate measure for Oklahoma schools and districts, one that will better provide contextual information that educators, families and communities need to know about our schools, their academic performance, student growth and progress especially for high-need and at-risk student groups,” State Superintendent of Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister said.

"Also at today’s meeting, the SBE approved OSDE’s Fiscal Year 2018 budget request of $2.64 billion for common education, which includes an increase of $221 million over the FY 2017 budget. The increase maintains per-student funding to reflect Oklahoma’s student population growth, adding $56.7 million to the school funding formula and restoring funding for the Instructional Materials, Support of Public School Activities and Agency Support for Schools line items," says the release.

Angus Valley Elementary received the highest grade of 97%, with Central Ninth Grade Center being the only other school to receive an A. Charles Page High School received a C-. The Early Childhood Development Center did not receive a grade. 

Grades are based on three criteria. 50% of the grading is based on Student Performance, with Overall Student Growth and Bottom Growth accounting for 25% each. Student Achievement is based on the Oklahoma School Testing Program assessments in grades three through high school. Student Growth is based on annual student learning gains as measured by Oklahoma's standardized assessments in reading and mathematics in grades three through eight, and Algebra I and English II End of Instruction Exams. 

Angus Valley Elementary

Angus Valley, located at 412 West 55th Street, on the South side of town, received a 97%. Angus serves students from Pre-Kindergarten through Fifth Grade. On Student Achievement, the students received a B in all curriculum, including Reading, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies. In overall growth they received an A in both Reading and Mathematics. The bottom quarter of students received an 86% on growth. The school maintained an attendance rate greater than 95% for an additional 10 points. The strongest subject for the school was Social Studies with 88% and the weakest subject was Science with 81%. 

Northwoods Fine Arts Academy and Garfield STEAM Academy

Northwoods, located at 1691 Old North Road, in Northeast Sand Springs, and Garfield, located at 701 North Roosevelt Avenue, just north of downtown, were graded together and received a 71%. Northwoods serves students from Kindergarten through Second Grade, and Garfield serves students from Third through Fifth Grades. This will change in the next school year as both schools separate and adopt a K-5 format. On Student Achievement, the students received a C in Reading, a D in Mathematics, and Fs in Science and Social Studies. In overall growth they received a C in Reading and a D in Mathematics. The bottom quarter of students received a 46% on growth. The schools maintained a 95% attendance rate for an additional 10 points. The strongest subject for the schools was Reading with 73% and the weakest subject was Science with 42%. 

Limestone Elementary

Limestone, located at 4201 South Walnut Creek Drive, in South Sand Springs, received an 85%. Limestone serves students from Pre-Kindergarten through Fifth Grade. On Student Achievement, the students received a B in Reading, Cs in Mathematics, and Social Studies, and a D in Science. Overall Student Growth received an A in Reading and a C in Mathematics. The bottom quarter of students received a 58% on growth. The school maintained an attendance rate greater than 95% for an additional 10 points. The strongest subject for the school was Reading with 86% and the weakest subject was Science with 63%.

Pratt Elementary

Pratt, located at 305 West 35th Street, in South Sand Springs, received an 84%. Pratt serves students from Kindergarten through Fifth Grade. On Student Achievement, the students received Bs in Reading and Mathematics, a D in Social Studies, and an F in Science. Overall Student Growth received Bs in both Reading and Mathematics. The bottom quarter of students received a 55% on growth. The school maintained an attendance rate of greater than 95% for an additional 10 points. The strongest subject for the school was Reading at 84% and the weakest subject was Science with 55%.

Clyde Boyde Middle School

Clyde Boyd, located at 305 West 35th Street in South Sand Springs, received a 74%. The school serves students from Sixth through Eighth Grade. On Student Achievement, the students received Cs in Reading and Mathematics, and Fs in Science and Social Studies. Overall Student Growth received Cs in both Reading and Mathematics. The bottom quarter of students received a 50% on growth. The school received 10 bonus points for a 94% attendance rate, a sub-5% dropout rate, and an advanced coursework participation rate greater than 95%. The strongest subject for the school was a tie between Reading and Mathematics at 72%, while the weakest subject was Social Studies at 48%.

Central Ninth Grade Center

CNGC, located at 14 West 4th Street in downtown, received a 94%. On Student Achievement, the students received a B in Mathematics, and did not receive grades on the other subjects due to an insufficient number of students' scores. Overall Student Growth received an A in Mathematics, while the bottom quarter of students received an 80% on growth. The school received 10 bonus points for a 94% attendance rate, a sub-5% dropout rate, and an advanced coursework participation rate greater than 95%. 

Charles Page High School

CPHS, located at 500 North Adams Road, received a 71%. On Student Achievement, the students received a C in English, Ds in Mathematics and U.S. History, and an F in Biology I. Overall Student Growth received a B in English II and an F in Algebra I. The bottom quarter of students received a 60% on growth. The school recorded an 87% for graduation rate, a 65% on EOI performance, a 52% on College Entrance Exams, and a 64% on College Entrance Exam participation. They received 3 bonus points for advanced coursework participation and performance greater than 95% and year-to-year growth.