
StateImpact Oklahoma
StateImpact Oklahoma reports on education, health, environment, and the intersection of government and everyday Oklahomans. It's a reporting project and collaboration of KWGS, KGOU, KOSU and KCCU, with broadcasts heard on NPR Member stations.
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A bill in Oklahoma banning all forms of gender-affirming care for trans youth was paused by Oklahoma’s attorney general amid litigation from the ACLU of Oklahoma. Now, trans youth and providers are coping with all the uncertainty.
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More than 250 volunteers collected temperature and air quality data around Oklahoma City through a community science project in August to study urban heat islands. StateImpact’s Britny Cordera reports the NOAA funded project could help the city prepare for extreme heat.
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Faced with the dangers of excessive heat, educators around the state are getting creative to keep kids safe and cool while still providing recreational opportunities.
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StateImpact Oklahoma’s health coverage informed listeners through the COVID-19 pandemic, the state’s voter-mandated expansion of Medicaid, and the opioid epidemic. StateImpact managing editor Logan Layden introduces us to Jillian Taylor, the new reporter continuing the work to tell health stories that impact you, your community and the entire state.
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Tulsa’s North Peoria Church of Christ used to call Greenwood home. That was before I-244 displaced it and cut through historic Black Wall Street. StateImpact’s Britny Cordera talked with State Rep. Regina Goodwin, who represents the area and attends the church, about its legacy and a planning grant to study the removal of the expressway.
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Next Thursday, the State Board of Education will consider changing the accreditation status of the state’s largest school district, Tulsa Public Schools. This comes after over a year of remarks from State Superintendent Ryan Walters targeting the district. StateImpact’s Beth Wallis and Public Radio Tulsa's Max Bryan break down what’s behind the battle for TPS.
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Rebecca Jim owns a mile and a half acreage just north of Vinita, Oklahoma, at the northern edge of the Cherokee Nation. She inherited this land from her family who used to ranch cattle here. She said her land is longer than it is wide, perfect for bringing back prairie chickens. She is turning two fields on the land into prairies to bring back prairie chickens.
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Signing bonuses of as much as $50,000 are what Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters said is needed to attract new and retired teachers to the classroom.That’s also what makes his new bonus plan a risky policy. StateImpact's Beth Wallis teamed up with Oklahoma Watch education reporter Jennifer Palmer for this story.
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StateImpact’s Logan Layden sat down with education reporter Beth Wallis for a breakdown of what education measures Oklahomans are going to get for their money after a contentious 2023 legislative session.
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Walters repeatedly emphasized his focus on open communication with superintendents around the state. But when StateImpact sent out a survey to those superintendents, a much more complex picture emerged.
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The Oklahoma legislature has been deadlocked for weeks as it hashes out a plan for education funding. StateImpact’s Beth Wallis sat down with Oklahoman newspaper education reporter Nuria Martinez-Keel to talk about the events at the Capitol that led up to this moment.
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The governor and the Legislature have been at odds over the state’s Medicaid agency, the Oklahoma Health Care Authority. That fight came to a head last week, when the Senate booted the agency director from his Secretary of Health position. StateImpact’s Catherine Sweeney talks with Tres Savage, the editor of nonprofit outlet NonDoc, about what led lawmakers to reject Secretary Kevin Corbett's re-instatement.