OKC School Board candidates discuss issues at forum

Hopefuls for the Oklahoma City School Board addressed questions about student discipline, community engagement, teacher retention and the role of charter schools Monday night.

Eleven people are seeking three positions, including five who are seeking to replace Chairman Lynne Hardin.

“Our goal should be to provide stability and accountability to every district employee, teacher and student,” said board member Paula Lewis, an occupational therapist who is running for chairman.

Lewis is running against former school board member Wilfredo Santos Rivera, Bianca Rose, a former district teacher, and Stanley Hupfeld, a former hospital executive.

A fifth candidate, Gregory Wyatt, did not attend the

two-hour candidate forum hosted by

at The Venue OKC in the Plaza District. About 75 people attended.

Hupfeld, who has a district school named after him, said his business experience and community ties make him uniquely qualified to be board chairman.

Hupfeld said the district needs to do a better job of reaching out to the business, cultural, spiritual and nonprofit sectors for help.

“We don’t have enough money to not take help,” he said. “If we demonstrated we’re interested, we could make a difference in all these children’s lives.”

Rose focused her remarks on the need to better support teachers and make policy decisions to put children first.

“Our teachers are being overwhelmed with overcrowded classrooms and overcrowded schools,” she said. “We need to address training for teachers and offer them all of the support they need.”

Santos Rivera said the district “is all about control” and slow to change. Parents, he added, are being left out of the equation.

“Unless we address systemic change head-on, it doesn’t matter who is sitting on the board,” he said.

Most of the candidates said they support the job Superintendent Aurora Lora is doing while acknowledging the need to hold her accountable.

“This is a team effort. Not one person can come in an do this,” said Justin Ellis, a District 2 board member who is seeking re-election.

Ellis, a business owner and operator, was among those who pointed out the need for more in-school suspension programs and special programs to keep disruptive students in school.

“A child who is not in school is on their way to prison,” he said. “So keep ‘em in school. But to do that we have to give resources to teachers ... to principals. We have to understand what students go through.”

Ellis is running against Nick Singer, a legislative and political organizer, and Rebecca Budd, a volunteer coordinator at Martin Luther King Elementary School.

Budd stressed the importance of setting a clear vision of what is important for the district today and “10 years from now.”

“Our board has not had a vision for them to work with,” she said, referring to Lora and her predecessors, which number 10 since 2000.

Singer said a top priority if he is elected will be to maximize community engagement. He questioned the effectiveness of some charter schools.

“I don’t think a child should have to win a lottery to get a great education,” he said. “The process creates a certain demographic in certain schools.”

The Feb. 14 election is open to all voters living in the Oklahoma City Public Schools district. If no school board candidate receives a majority of the votes, the two highest vote recipients will advance to an April 14 runoff.

Charles Henry, an attorney, Cheryl Poole, a retired district teacher, and Nathan Shirley, a construction company executive, are vying for the District 1 seat occupied by Bob Hammack, who is not running for re-election.

“I filed because I’m passionate about Oklahoma City Public Schools and the education our children are receiving,” Poole said. “We have got to hire the best teachers and keep them in our buildings to educate our children.”

Attorney Charles Henry said the district is in a “crisis situation.”

“We need to attract and retain quality teachers,” he said. “If a charter can help kids improve their lives, why not support it.”

Shirley said: “As a board member we need to be out there representing our schools. A board member also needs to hold the organization they’re reviewing accountable.”