Criticism from constituents prompts no vote from Lawton legislator

Two Southwest Oklahoma legislators say they generally agree with rule changes proposed by the Oklahoma Department of Education.

But, while Rep. Rande Worthen, R-Lawton, was one of three “no” votes when that list of rules came for a decision before the House Administrative Rules Committee last week, Rep. Gerrid Kendrix, R-Altus, voted to remove only one, voting with the 7-vote majority to approve the other rules so they can pass to the House and Senate for consideration.

Those rules drew heated criticism when they passed the Administrative Rules Committee, with critics especially vocal about proposals to tie a school district’s accreditation to student test results; banning diversity, equity and inclusion programs; and crafting “foundational values” for the state’s education system that would include acknowledgement of a creator. Other proposals range from ending the prohibition on school board members participating in school district administrative functions to removing the Oklahoma State School Boards Association from the list of organizations automatically approved to provide school board training.

Worthen said constituents were the reason he added his “no” vote to those cast by Rep. Melissa Provenzano and Rep. Amanda Swope, both Tulsa Democrats who are former educators.

“I voted the district,” Worthen said. “I felt most of the people were not in favor of it, so I voted no.”

Worthen said he personally wasn’t opposed to the rules, but constituents apparently didn’t agree and sent messages urging a “no” vote. But, he said he is troubled by some of the criticism surrounding the rules, noting, for example, that one rule requires school districts to publish their budgets online.

“Why would you object to that?” he asked. “There are multiple rules that are fairly understandable, but most of the comments were, ‘reject all rules.’ “

Worthen said there is a lot of misinformation about the proposals, including the proposal to tie test scores to accreditation. Worthen said that rule actually would give a district an academic accreditation deficiency if students don’t meet certain academic standards, adding it would be one of about 120 items on a “check list” the Department of Education uses when evaluating school districts and a final decision on accreditation is based on how districts perform on all those levels.

Kendrix, who chairs the Administrative Rules Committee, agrees. He said the State Department of Education has a specific process it follows when determining accreditation, evaluating the district on specific criteria then providing resources to districts to correct any deficiencies it finds. He said the testing proposal is one of several that have been misunderstood.

“I think fear is the thing that drives a lot of it,” he said. “Making a decision based on fear is not the best action.”

Kendrix said while he was willing to remove one proposal — allowing students to submit Classical Learning Test scores to be considered for recognition as an academic scholar — it was a decision he made to save the other rules.

“I don’t have an issue with that,” he said, adding that honors designation proposal would give students more opportunities to win scholarships. “My goal as chairman is to keep the resolution moving forward, make sure we have enough votes to keep it (the rules) operational.”

He said two committee members had problems with that rule, and told Kendrix they would vote for the rest of the package if the Classic Learning Test rule was removed.

The issue is an illustration of the administrative rules process, Kendrix said, explaining that unless the rules are vetted by the Administrative Rules Committee, they will go into effect by default. Putting them through the committee process ensures rules are vetted by the state’s governing body.

“We’re trying to keep charge of that in the Legislature,” he said. “If the committee doesn’t act on it, it goes to the governor anyway.

Neither Kendrix or Worthen is willing to predict how the rules will do in the House and Senate, citing the controversy surrounding them. But, Kendrix said his goal is to get the rules on the House floor this week so they can be decided before the legislative session ends May 31.

“We’re coming down to a pretty short schedule,” he said.