Stillwater Public Schools

Stillwater Public Schools
Location
314 South Lewis Street
Stillwater, Oklahoma 74074
Payne County
United States of America
District information
Type Public, Primary, Secondary, Co-Educational
Grades Elementary PreK-5
Middle School 6-7
Junior High School 8-9
High School 10-12
Superintendent Dr. Washington
Schools 9
Budget $39,500,000
Students and staff
Students 6081[1]
Teachers 452[2]
Athletic conference 6A District 4
Other information
Website www.stillwaterschools.com

The Stillwater Public School District is located in Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA. The Stillwater school district has nine schools together with an alternative education program.[3]

The district is managed by the Interim Superintendent Dr. Washington, who works under the direction of a five-person board.[4]

The mascot of both the district and the high school is the Pioneers.[5]

Schools

High school

Middle school

Stillwater OSSAA Athletic Championships
SPORT TITLES YEAR(S)
Baseball 2 1957, 2014
Boys Basketball 3 1923, 1959, 1960
Girls Basketball 1 1926
Boys Swimming 3 1973, 1974, 2014
Girls Swimming 2 1998, 2015
Girls Tennis 1 1982
Boys Track and Field 1 1953
Wrestling 8 1922, 1923, 1924, 1931,
1954, 1969, 1970, 2014
Total 21

Elementary schools

All elementary schools host grades pre-k through fifth grade.

Alternative education

Open Records Act Controversy

On December 13, 2011, Superintendent Ann Caine and the Stillwater Public Schools school board discussed changing the traditional Academic Termschool year calendar to a Year-round school calendar at the local school board meeting. The board decided to continue with the traditional school calendar, but the local newspaper, The Stillwater NewsPress, reported that "Stillwater Public Schools is heading to a continuous learning academic calendar, but it won’t be in 2012."[4]

In an attempt to learn more about the decision making process for the calendar change, a parent made an Open Records Act Request through the Freedom of information in the United States request to Stillwater Schools for information about the calendar committee. On December 16, 2011, FOIOklahoma, a Freedom of Information Act watchdog, reported that the school district's calendar committee had met for "two months...No public notice. No agendas. No meeting minutes." The parent who requested the Open Records information was told she would have to pay a $250 search fee because her request "would clearly cause excessive disruption of the District's essential functions," which violated the school district and the state of Oklahoma's Open Records Act policy. [5]

By February 2012, Superintendent Caine had given several reasons that the district did not initially fulfill the Open Records request. FOI reported on February 18, 2012, that the district did not keep a list of committee members, and Ann Caine told the Stillwater Journal on January 19, 2012 that she did not want to open committee members to being confronted by an angry parent. [6] [7]

Eventually the district released limited emails regarding the calendar committee. Several comments on the Stillwater Online forum reflected a concern in the community that the Open Records Act request and denial was not reported by the NewsPress. [8]

Athletic Village Purchase

On June 6, 2012, The Stillwater NewsPress reported "Stillwater Public Schools closed on Cimarron Plaza, purchasing the property from Cimarron Tex-Ag Limited Partners for $4.3 million after a week’s delay." This purchase generated comment in the community because the district purchased the land before asking voters for bond money. "The system will ask voters in the next five to seven years to pass a bond issue to pay for the land and fund development of the sports complex." [9]

Shooting

On September 26, 2012, a student died by a self-inflicted gunshot at Stillwater Junior High School.[6]

Grade Reconfiguration Controversy

In March 2013, then Superintendent Ann Caine presented the school board with the possibility of reconfiguring the grades to move fifth grade to the middle school, seventh grade to the junior high, and move ninth grade to the high school. The district said this move was necessary due to budgetary restrictions, which would also cause the libraries to no longer be funded and custodial staff to be reduced. Cuts to administrative staffing were minimal and at the March 24, 2013 board meeting at Stillwater High School, the athletic director said that athletics had not been asked to make cuts. Parents opposed the reconfiguration and spending cuts, because the schedule change "would limit ...opportunities for concurrent enrollment" in the university town and "Teaching positions were being reduced instead of higher administration."[7]

The superintendent modified the plan to change the schedule change at the high school after students started a #KeepTheBlock facebook page and change.org petition generated support in the community, and teachers found a way for the district to save money by cutting back on positions and textbook expenses.[8]

In November 2014, the Board voted to delay the reconfiguration due to buildings needing repair and staffing concerns.[9] In July 2015, after the retirement of the superintendent, the board again delayed the reconfiguration, due to concerns about academics and renovations.[10] Through 2015, the budget continued to be an issue, with the board making controversial spending choices on repairs to athletics instead of funding the libraries and restoring funding that had been cut in previous budgetary crises.[11]

References

  1. ↑ "SDE School Directory". Oklahoma State Department of Education. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  2. ↑ "FY2015 Teacher Index" (PDF). Oklahoma State Department of Education.
  3. ↑ "Schools". Stillwater Public Schools. Retrieved 15 June 2011.
  4. ↑ "School Board Members". Stillwater Public Schools. Retrieved 15 June 2011.
  5. ↑ "Stillwater Public Schools, District Profile 2010" (PDF). Stillwater Public Schools. Retrieved 15 June 2011.
  6. ↑ "School shooting leaves Stillwater stunned". NewsOK.com. https://plus.google.com/b/101290684830559652394. Retrieved 2015-12-10. External link in |publisher= (help)
  7. ↑ "Stillwater Public Schools to make organization changes for budget". ocolly.com. Retrieved 2015-12-10.
  8. ↑ "Stillwater high school to keep block schedule". ocolly.com. Retrieved 2015-12-10.
  9. ↑ "Stillwater Board of Education delays grade reconfiguration". Stillwater News Press. Retrieved 2015-12-10.
  10. ↑ "Grade redo motion puzzles Board". Stillwater News Press. Retrieved 2015-12-10.
  11. ↑ "SPS moves forward with high school gym maintenance". Stillwater News Press. Retrieved 2015-12-10.

External links

Coordinates: 36°07′08″N 97°03′26″W / 36.118793°N 97.057297°W / 36.118793; -97.057297

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