Tulsa World Opinion

In this week's episode, Ginnie Graham and Barry Friedman close the curtain on 2023, discussing the achievements and failures of the state and federal governments. How will this lead into the 2024 presidential election? What will be the focus for Oklahoma's legislature and other leaders next session?

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A look at what Oklahoma lawmakers didn't pass this year

Teacher pay raises, private school tax credits: What to know about Oklahoma's education plan

Coverage of State Superintendent Ryan Walters

Ginnie Graham: Suggestions on how to influence arguments for Tulsa Public Schools to keep local control

Gov. Stitt: Give Tulsa Superintendent Ebony Johnson a chance

100 teacher vacancies at Tulsa Public Schools despite up to $6,000 signing bonuses

Eliminating state income tax faces same challenges it did more than two decades ago

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Note: Barry Friedman is an essayist, political columnist, petroleum geology reporter and comedian living in Tulsa. In addition to “Funny You Should Mention It,” “Road Comic,” “Four Days and a Year Later” and “The Joke Was On Me,” his first novel, “Jacob Fishman’s Marriages,” a book about the worst love story ever, was published by Balkan Press in February. His sites are barrysfriedman.com and friedmanoftheplains.com.

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Chris Bernard, the president and chief executive officer of Hunger Free Oklahoma, joins Ginnie Graham this week to discuss a local and national issue that she calls "so solvable." Bernard says that food insecurity is a problem that shouldn't exist in America. So why is it such a big problem? Bernard and Graham dig into the issue and Bernard lays out some of the ways we can address the root issue.

Related

Opinion: We know how to solve food insecurity but need scalable resources and reach of governments

Ginnie Graham: Everyone can learn how to reduce food waste in their homes

Rep. John Waldron: Lawmakers, school districts have chance to eliminate school lunch debt for thousands of Oklahomans

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Jim Gray served as the Osage Nation chief from 2002 to 2010 and is the principal consultant at D.B.A. Gray Consultants. "I can’t escape from this history," Gray wrote in a guest column. "As an Osage, my great-grandfather, Henry Roan, is murdered in this film. As a former Chief of the Osage Nation, I had to deal with many unresolved issues that are associated with this period."

He speaks with Editorials Editor Ginnie Graham about his thoughts on having the Osage 'Reign of Terror' history told through the "Killers of the Flower Moon" book and movie.

Related

Former Osage Nation Chief Jim Gray column: 'Killers of the Flower Moon' teachable moment remains uncertain

Killers of the Flower Moon: See all our coverage going back to when scenes were shot here to reaction to the movie

A deeper look at the crimes committed against the Osage during the Reign of Terror | Late Edition: Crime Beat Chronicles podcast

Tulsa World Scene podcast: From Killers of the Flower Moon to Reservation Dogs: The future of Indigenous mainstream storytelling

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Editorial Editor Ginnie Graham: Email | Twitter | Follow her stories

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See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Anna Johnson is a professor and researcher at Georgetown University who has been studying education in Tulsa since 2016. She talks with Ginnie Graham about comparing third grade Oklahoma State Testing Program (OSTP) scores — the state’s standardized test — to researcher-administered developmental tests of children’s academic skills. Why might these tests not tell the full story of student skills? Would scaling back testing frequency help?

Related

Opinion column by Anna Johnson: What Oklahoma standardized third grade tests can tell us — and what they can't

2022 state test scores indicate partial academic rebound

From 2016: Tulsa's third-grade reading test results climb significantly for second year in a row

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Editorial Editor Ginnie Graham: Email | Twitter | Follow her stories

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One of the most common predictors of resisting mental health treatment is anosognosia, which is a lack of awareness of being mentally ill. Mike Brose is the former executive director of the Mental Health Association Oklahoma, adjunct university instructor and practicing licensed clinical social worker. He is a member of the Tulsa World Community Advisory Board. He speaks with Ginnie Graham about how Tulsa can help the homeless population, including those who who suffer from mental illness.

Related

Opinion column by Mike Brose: Doing the same thing over and again to reach Tulsa's most vulnerable homeless people a failing approach

Opinion column by Mike Brose: Steps to making progress to end Tulsa homelessness

Survey finds Tulsans open to other approaches to address homelessness, nonprofit says

Ginnie Graham: Grand Mental Health entering Tulsa's mental health services landscape

Opinion: Access to mental health services 24/7 key to having successful outcomes

Lawmakers asked to reform Oklahoma's eviction process

In 10 years serving Tulsa's homeless, City Lights finds 'everybody has something to give'

City seeks operator for proposed homeless shelter, case management program

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Editorial Editor Ginnie Graham: Email | Twitter | Follow her stories

Subscribe to this podcast at: Apple | Google | Spotify

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See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

"What separates an F school from an A school? What separates the schools at the top from those at the bottom? Affluence," writes Rep. John Waldron in his latest column. He represents Tulsa’s District 77 in the Oklahoma House. Previously, he worked as a social studies and history teacher at Booker T. Washington High School. He joins Ginnie Graham to talk about why A-F grades are problematic for the state's schools and districts. They also talk about the state's "lunch debt" problem and some startling statistics on corporal punishment in schools.

Related

Rep. John Waldron: Difference between 'A' and 'F' schools is affluence

Rep. John Waldron: Will you stand up against the rotten state of affairs being foisted on Oklahoma's public schools?

From the Tulsa World archives: Coverage of State Superintendent Ryan Walters

TPS utilizing Walk to Read help students build skills

Tulsa Union's National Teacher of Year says it's a 'hard time to be in public education'

50 years after controversy of integration, magnet programs a source of pride for Tulsa Public Schools

State Department of Education seeking smaller budget in FY25

Tulsa Public Schools provides first update to State Board of Education

From 2014: Inside an 'F' school series by Andrea Eger

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Editorial Editor Ginnie Graham: Email | Twitter | Follow her stories

Subscribe to this podcast at: Apple | Google | Spotify

Support the show: https://tulsaworld.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" to "Reservation Dogs," the TV and movie industry ties to Oklahoma are growing stronger lately. Justin Rawlins, Ph.D., is a professor of media studies and film studies at the University of Tulsa and the author of the forthcoming book “Imagining the Method” (University of Texas Press, 2024). He speaks with Ginnie Graham about why the WGA and SAG-AFTRA labor stoppages matter to Oklahoma, even if the Los Angeles picket lines seem far away.

Related

Opinion: A win for union workers in the media and film industry is a win for Tulsa

Opinion: I'm an American Airlines flight attendant and here's why I'm backing the union

A new breed of leaders are atop the largest US unions today. Here are some faces to know

The auto workers strike will drive up car prices, but not right away — unless consumers panic

UAW justifies wage demands by pointing to CEO pay raises. So how high were they?

Hollywood actor and writer strikes have broad support among Americans, AP-NORC poll shows

As writers and studios resume negotiations, here are the key players in the Hollywood strikes

An end in sight? Striking writers and Hollywood studios spend second full day in negotiations

Click here to submit a letter to the editor

Contact us

Editorial Editor Ginnie Graham: Email | Twitter | Follow her stories

Subscribe to this podcast at: Apple | Google | Spotify

Support the show: https://tulsaworld.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With oddball schedules and unruly passengers, air travel is not the glamorous industry some may think it is. Strikes are already impacting Hollywood and the U.S. auto industry. Is the flight industry next? Tulsa Hale and OU graduate Ron Todd is 35-year American Airlines flight attendant, flying out of Chicago, New York and currently Miami. He speaks with Ginnie Graham about a conflict getting less attention involves 27,000 flight attendants at American Airlines and more.

Related

Opinion: I'm an American Airlines flight attendant and here's why I'm backing the union

American Airlines flies to record second-quarter revenues and $1.3 billion profit

FAA says it has sent 250 cases of unruly passengers to FBI

Flight attack raises questions about security, mental health

Labor strife may become airline industry’s next big obstacle

Targeted auto strikes may spread to other states and cities as noon deadline set by union nears

A new breed of leaders are atop the largest US unions today. Here are some faces to know

The auto workers strike will drive up car prices, but not right away — unless consumers panic

UAW justifies wage demands by pointing to CEO pay raises. So how high were they?

Hollywood actor and writer strikes have broad support among Americans, AP-NORC poll shows

As writers and studios resume negotiations, here are the key players in the Hollywood strikes

An end in sight? Striking writers and Hollywood studios spend second full day in negotiations

Click here to submit a letter to the editor

Contact us

Editorial Editor Ginnie Graham: Email | Twitter | Follow her stories

Subscribe to this podcast at: Apple | Google | Spotify

Support the show: https://tulsaworld.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kimberlee Wilson is a senior at Oologah-Talala High School. She recent wrote a guest column entitled "I'm a 17-year-old Oklahoma student and my peers don't see the point in voting." She speaks with Ginnie Graham about why her peers "accept that their votes don’t make a difference," why voter turnout statewide is low, and how things can change.

Related

Opinion: I'm a 17-year-old Oklahoma student and my peers don't see the point in voting

Political notebook: Tulsa County already recruiting 2024 poll workers

Editorial: Straight-party outdated, passive approach to democracy

Why advocates want to change Oklahoma's primary voting system

Oklahoma voter turnout dips in this year's elections

Amid fuss over other states' election law changes, Oklahoma said to 'strike a good balance'

Oklahoma still last in the nation in voter participation despite recent registration surge

Click here to submit a letter to the editor

Contact us

Editorial Editor Ginnie Graham: Email | Twitter | Follow her stories

Subscribe to this podcast at: Apple | Google | Spotify

Support the show: https://tulsaworld.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lisa Kelly is CEO at The Arc of Oklahoma (formerly Centers for Disabilities). She speaks with Ginnie Graham about the challenges for people (and their families) with disabilities, including more than 5,100 Oklahomans. They are forced to wait years — 13 years on average in Oklahoma — for home and community-based services (HCBS), barriers to critical safety-net programs are too often a part of everyday life.

Related

Opinion: Caregiving crisis poses grave threat to families who depend on home-based services

Owasso woman with cerebral palsy thriving after receiving new standing wheelchair

Click here to submit a letter to the editor

Contact us

Editorial Editor Ginnie Graham: Email | Twitter | Follow her stories

Subscribe to this podcast at: Apple | Google | Spotify

Support the show: https://tulsaworld.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.