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Oklahoma City Public Schools, Oklahoma, elections

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Oklahoma City Public Schools
School Board badge.png
District details
School board members: 8
Students: 32,899 (2023-2024)
Schools: 58 (2023-2024)
Website: Link

Oklahoma City Public Schools is a school district in Oklahoma (Oklahoma County). During the 2024 school year, 32,899 students attended one of the district's 58 schools.

This page provides information regarding school board members, election rules, finances, academics, policies, and more details about the district.

Elections

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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, Chairperson

General election

Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 1

General election

Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 2

General election

Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 3

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 3

Jessica Cifuentes defeated incumbent Cary Pirrong in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 3 on April 2, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Jessica Cifuentes
Jessica Cifuentes (Nonpartisan)
 
66.6
 
233
Cary Pirrong (Nonpartisan)
 
33.4
 
117

Total votes: 350
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 4

General election

Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 6

General election

Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 5

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 5

Adrian Anderson defeated Sharri Coleman in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 5 on April 5, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Adrian Anderson (Nonpartisan)
 
52.7
 
557
Sharri Coleman (Nonpartisan)
 
47.3
 
499

Total votes: 1,056
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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 7

General election

Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, Chairperson

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, Chairperson

Incumbent Paula Lewis defeated incumbent Charles Henry in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, Chairperson on April 6, 2021.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Paula Lewis
Paula Lewis (Nonpartisan)
 
51.9
 
4,579
Image of Charles Henry
Charles Henry (Nonpartisan)
 
48.1
 
4,236

Total votes: 8,815
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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 1

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 1

Carole Thompson defeated Brett Hayes in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 1 on April 6, 2021.

Candidate
%
Votes
Carole Thompson (Nonpartisan)
 
58.9
 
1,168
Brett Hayes (Nonpartisan)
 
41.1
 
816

Total votes: 1,984
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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 2

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 2

Lori Bowman defeated James McHenry in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 2 on April 6, 2021.

Candidate
%
Votes
Lori Bowman (Nonpartisan)
 
75.5
 
1,872
James McHenry (Nonpartisan)
 
24.5
 
609

Total votes: 2,481
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 7

General election

Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 3

General election

The general election was canceled. Carrie Coppernoll Jacobs (Nonpartisan) won without appearing on the ballot.

Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 4

General election

The general election was canceled. Mark Harold Mann (Nonpartisan) won without appearing on the ballot.

Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 6

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 6

Incumbent Gloria Torres defeated Josh Means in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 6 on April 2, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Gloria Torres
Gloria Torres (Nonpartisan)
 
57.2
 
287
Josh Means (Nonpartisan)
 
42.8
 
215

Total votes: 502
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 4

General election

The general election was canceled. Mark Harold Mann (Nonpartisan) won without appearing on the ballot.

Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 5

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 5

Incumbent Ruth Veales defeated Willie Kelley and Nichell Braddy-Garcia in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 5 on February 13, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Ruth Veales
Ruth Veales (Nonpartisan)
 
58.7
 
965
Willie Kelley (Nonpartisan)
 
26.0
 
428
Nichell Braddy-Garcia (Nonpartisan)
 
15.3
 
252

Total votes: 1,645
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 7

General election

The general election was canceled. Jace Kirk (Nonpartisan) won without appearing on the ballot.

Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, Chairperson

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, Chairperson

Incumbent Paula Lewis won election in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, Chairperson on April 4, 2017.

Candidate
Image of Paula Lewis
Paula Lewis (Nonpartisan)

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 1

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 1

Incumbent Charles Henry won election in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 1 on April 4, 2017.

Candidate
Image of Charles Henry
Charles Henry (Nonpartisan)

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 2

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 2

Incumbent Rebecca Budd won election in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 2 on April 4, 2017.

Candidate
Image of Rebecca Budd
Rebecca Budd (Nonpartisan)

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 3

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 3

Incumbent Carrie Coppernoll Jacobs won election in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 3 on February 9, 2016.

Candidate
Image of Carrie Coppernoll Jacobs
Carrie Coppernoll Jacobs (Nonpartisan)

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 6

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 6

Incumbent Gloria Torres won election in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 6 on February 10, 2015.

Candidate
Image of Gloria Torres
Gloria Torres (Nonpartisan)

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 7

General election

General election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 7

Incumbent Ron Millican won election in the general election for Oklahoma City Public Schools school board, District 7 on February 11, 2014.

Candidate
Image of Ron Millican
Ron Millican (Nonpartisan)

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Election rules

 

Election dates and frequency

See also: Rules governing school board election dates and timing

School board nonpartisan primary elections in Oklahoma are held on the second Tuesday in February every year. School board primary elections are only held if more than two candidates run for a school board member seat. If two candidates run, the primary is canceled and both candidates advance to the general election.

School board general elections in Oklahoma are held on the first Tuesday in April every year.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Oklahoma Statute §70-5-107A. Boards of education of school districts - Membership - Election procedure

Recent or upcoming election dates for all public school districts in the state

Below are the recent/upcoming dates for all public school districts in the state. There may be exceptions to these dates for specific districts because of local charters and district-specific exceptions and carve-outs.

  • Filing deadline date: December 3, 2025
  • Primary election date: February 10, 2026
  • General election date: April 7, 2026

Election system

School board members in Oklahoma are elected through a system of a nonpartisan primary election and a nonpartisan general election. The primary election is only held if a large enough number of candidates run for office.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Oklahoma Statute §70-5-107A. Boards of education of school districts - Membership - Election procedure

Party labels on the ballot

See also: Rules governing party labels in school board elections

School board elections in Oklahoma are nonpartisan, which means party labels do not appear on the ballot for school board candidates.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Oklahoma Statute §70-5-107A. Boards of education of school districts - Membership - Election procedure

Winning an election

The top two school board candidates with the most votes in the nonpartisan primary advance to the general election as long as none of them receives more than 50% of the vote. If only two candidates file for the primary election, they automatically advance to the general election. If there are three or more candidates on the ballot for the primary election and one receives more than 50% of the vote, that candidate wins the election outright and is elected to office, and the general election is canceled.

The school board candidate with the most votes in the general election is elected to office. In Oklahoma, school board candidates can be elected outright in the nonpartisan primary election.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Oklahoma Statute §70-5-107A. Boards of education of school districts - Membership - Election procedure

Term length and staggering

School districts with three board members have three-year board member terms. School districts with five members have five-year board member terms. School districts with seven members have four-year board member terms. Elementary school district board members have three-year terms. Independent school districts (which serve grades K-12) have school boards with five-year terms or four-year terms, depending on how many school board members they have. Districts with average student attendance of more than 30,000 can opt to elect a chair of the board in addition to other school board members. The chair must be elected at large to four-year terms. As of 2022, Oklahoma City Schools was the only district that had opted to have an additional elected chair of the school board.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Oklahoma Statute §70-5-107A. Boards of education of school districts - Membership - Election procedure


Representation: at large vs. by sub-district

School districts either elect all regular school board members at large, or they elect all regular school board members from residence areas (sub-districts) with one board member elected by the voters of each sub-district. Elementary school districts must elect school board members at large. Any school district with an average daily student attendance of fewer than 1,800 students may choose to elect school board members at large instead of from sub-districts. Other school districts must elect school board members by sub-districts. Independent school districts that contain a city and for which less than 20% of the population of the school district resides outside of the city's limits may use the city's ward boundaries instead of drawing its own sub-district boundaries. Board members elected from sub-districts must reside within that sub-district when elected and for the duration of their terms. School districts with average student attendance of more than 30,000 can opt to elect a chair of the school board at large, which means that if other board members are elected by sub-district, that district would use a combination of elections at large and elections by sub-district elections.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Oklahoma Statute §70-5-107A. Boards of education of school districts - Membership - Election procedure

Filing deadlines and swearing-in dates

The deadline for candidates to file for regular school board elections is the Wednesday following the first Monday in December in the year before the February primary election. Candidates must submit their filing by 5:00 pm on the day of the filing deadline.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Oklahoma Statute §26-13A-110

Newly elected school board members officially take office at the first school board meeting taking place after the results of the election have been certified.

DocumentIcon.jpg See law: Oklahoma Statute §70-5-107A. Boards of education of school districts - Membership - Election procedure

 


About the district

School board

Oklahoma City Public Schools consists of eight members serving four-year terms. To find information about school board meetings, click here.

List of school board members
NameSeatYear assumed officeYear term ends
Lori BowmanDistrict 220212029
Carole ThompsonDistrict 120212029
Paula Lewischairperson20172029
Jessica CifuentesDistrict 320242028
Dana MeisterDistrict 420242028
Juan LeconaDistrict 620232027
Mike SheltonDistrict 520242026
Meg McElhaneyDistrict 720192026

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District map

Overlapping state house districts

The table was limited to the lower chamber because it provides the most granularity. State house districts tend to be more numerous and therefore smaller than state senate or U.S. House districts. This provides an impression of the partisan affiliations in the area.

Budget

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[1]

Revenue, 2021-2022
SOURCE AMOUNT AMOUNT PER STUDENT PERCENT
Federal: $168,243,000 $5,244 34%
Local: $162,419,000 $5,062 33%
State: $161,787,000 $5,042 33%
Total: $492,449,000 $15,348
Expenditures, 2021-2022
TYPE AMOUNT AMOUNT PER STUDENT PERCENT
Total Expenditures: $476,925,000 $14,863
Total Current Expenditures: $434,107,000 $13,529
Instructional Expenditures: $216,680,000 $6,753 45%
Student and Staff Support: $79,367,000 $2,473 17%
Administration: $60,838,000 $1,896 13%
Operations, Food Service, Other: $77,222,000 $2,406 16%
Total Capital Outlay: $36,707,000 $1,144
Construction: $28,405,000 $885
Total Non El-Sec Education & Other: $2,466,000 $76
Interest on Debt: $3,643,000 $113

Academic performance

Each year, state and local education agencies use tests and other standards to assess student proficiency. Although the data below was published by the U.S. Department of Education, proficiency measurements are established by the states. As a result, proficiency levels are not comparable between different states and year-over-year proficiency levels within a district may not be comparable because states may change their proficiency measurements. To protect student privacy, percentages are reported as ranges for groups of 300 students or fewer. If five or fewer students were included in a data set, the data will display as "PS."[2]

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2020-2021 7 35 3 4 3 10 20
2018-2019 12 41 6 10 10 14 26
2017-2018 12 42 6 11 13 14 25
2016-2017 17 47 8 16 15 19 30
2015-2016 47 76 35 46 44 47 62
2014-2015 51 76 39 51 51 53 63
2013-2014 47 75 34 48 44 49 58
2012-2013 54 80 44 54 53 63 65
2011-2012 53 78 43 52 54 60-64 65
2010-2011 54 80 44 53 54 65

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2020-2021 10 31 6 7 10 16 28
2018-2019 16 40 10 12 16 21 35
2017-2018 16 36 10 13 17 22 36
2016-2017 19 40 12 16 20 24 38
2015-2016 49 73 40 46 52 50 67
2014-2015 51 69 43 48 55 56 66
2013-2014 49 70 41 47 49 50 64
2012-2013 52 71 47 49 54 62 66
2011-2012 52 71 46 48 54 60-64 68
2010-2011 52 71 47 47 53 67

The following table shows the graduation rate of district students each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2019-2020 65 80-89 67 65 50-54 65-69 55-59
2018-2019 74 80-89 74 75 60-64 60-69 65-69
2017-2018 67 80-84 65 73 40-44 60-69 54
2016-2017 73 70-74 78 73 65-69 70-79 65-69
2015-2016 71 80-84 76 71 65-69 40-59 61
2014-2015 74 80-84 79 75 55-59 60-79 60-64
2013-2014 73 85-89 77 71 55-59 >=50 70-74
2012-2013 79 90-94 77 79 65-69 60-79 82

Students

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[3]

Year Enrollment Year-to-year change (%)
2023-2024 32,899 -1.1
2022-2023 33,245 3.5
2021-2022 32,086 3.3
2020-2021 31,026 -15.7
2019-2020 35,897 -4.5
2018-2019 37,530 -3.1
2017-2018 38,709 -2.8
2016-2017 39,806 -2.6
2015-2016 40,823 -0.6
2014-2015 41,074 0.4
2013-2014 40,913 -9.3
2012-2013 44,720 3.4
2011-2012 43,212 0.5
2010-2011 42,989 1.0
2009-2010 42,549 3.4
2008-2009 41,089 0.3
2007-2008 40,985 0.5
2006-2007 40,778 1.1
2005-2006 40,322 -0.2
2004-2005 40,387 -0.5
2003-2004 40,599 -0.6
2002-2003 40,856 1.5
2001-2002 40,240 1.2
2000-2001 39,750 0.6
1999-2000 39,531 0.0
Racial Demographics, 2023-2024
RACE Oklahoma City Public Schools (%) Oklahoma K-12 STUDENTS (%)
American Indian/Alaska Native 2.0 10.9
Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander 2.2 2.3
Black 19.6 7.8
Hispanic 57.0 20.5
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 0.4 0.5
Two or More Races 7.6 13.5
White 11.3 44.5

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Staff

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[4]

As of the 2023-2024 school year, Oklahoma City Public Schools had 2,133.43 full-time classroom teachers. The student-teacher ratio was 15.42.

Teachers, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF TEACHERS
Prekindergarten: 97.96
Kindergarten: 0.00
Elementary: 815.42
Secondary: 1,220.05
Total: 2,133.43

Oklahoma City Public Schools employed 12.00 district administrators and 147.49 school administrators as of the 2023-2024 school year.

Administrators, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF ADMINISTRATORS
District Administrators: 12.00
District Administrative Support: 146.65
School Administrators: 147.49
School Administrative Support: 153.92
Other staff, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF OTHER STAFF
Instructional Aides: 548.85
Instruc. Coordinators & Supervisors: 45.08
Total Guidance Counselors: 115.61
Elementary Guidance Counselors: 38.36
Secondary Guidance Counselors: 77.25
Librarians/Media Specialists: 55.54
Library/Media Support: 59.46
Student Support Services: 599.05
Other Support Services: 739.52

Schools

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[5]

Oklahoma City Public Schools operates 58 schools. They are listed below in alphabetical order.
List of schools
SCHOOL NAMENUMBER OF STUDENTSGRADES
Adams Es387PK-4
Adelaide Lee Es555PK-4
Arthur Es405PK-4
Belle Isle Ms4725-8
Bodine Es564PK-4
Britton Es581PK-4
Buchanan Es480PK-4
Capitol Hill Hs1,5529-12
Capitol Hill Ms6225-8
Cesar Chavez Es590PK-4
Classen Hs Of Advanced Studies8109-12
Classen Ms Of Advanced Studies8905-8
Cleveland Es439PK-4
Coolidge Es541PK-4
Douglass Hs6499-12
Emerson Alternative Ed. (Es)42PK-5
Emerson Alternative Ed. (Hs)3449-12
Emerson Alternative Ed. (Ms)926-8
Esperanza Es423PK-4
Eugene Field Es376PK-4
Fillmore Es632PK-4
Hawthorne Es350PK-4
Hayes Es427PK-4
Heronville Es565PK-4
Hillcrest Es520PK-4
Jefferson Ms9415-8
John Marshall Hs8639-12
John Marshall Ms6725-8
Kaiser Es507PK-4
Mark Twain Es284PK-4
Mary Golda Ross Ms7095-8
M.L. King Jr. Es514PK-4
Monroe Es330PK-4
Moon Ms6585-8
Nichols Hills Es514PK-4
Northwest Classen Hs1,9029-12
Prairie Queen Es575PK-4
Putnam Heights Academy Hs659-12
Putnam Heights Academy Ms235-8
Quail Creek Es529PK-4
Ridgeview Es395PK-4
Rockwood Es451PK-4
Rogers Middle School3735-7
Roosevelt Ms8675-8
Southeast Hs8489-12
Southeast Ms6415-8
Southern Hills Es479PK-4
Spencer Es3672-4
Star Spencer Hs4019-12
Star Spencer Ms1148-8
Taft Ms1,0565-8
Thelma R. Parks Es441PK-4
U. S. Grant Hs1,6989-12
Van Buren Es342PK-4
Webster Ms7495-8
Wheeler Ms5175-8
Willow Brook Es368PK-1
Wilson Es398PK-4

School board meetings

The following articles were produced by Citizen Portal using artificial intelligence to analyze public meetings. Citizen Portal publishes articles based on the availability of meeting broadcasts, so the number of articles provided may vary by district. Although these articles are not produced or edited by Ballotpedia, they are included here as a supplemental resource for readers.

School board meeting articles (click to collapse)

About school boards

Education legislation in Oklahoma

Bills are monitored by BillTrack50 and sorted by action history.

See also

School Boards Education Policy Local Politics Oklahoma
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External links

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  • Footnotes