OKPLAC Executive Board
Parent and grassroots education advocate leaders have had a significant impact on changing the dialog regarding public education in Oklahoma during the past decade. Continued engagement and advocacy are necessary to build upon the first step in restoring education funding which occurred last spring. Toward this effort, local parent groups across the state are connecting to share information, ideas, and legislative goals to ensure quality public education for our children, resulting in a stronger Oklahoma for everyone.
That’s why we are thrilled about the recent formation of Oklahoma Parent Legislative Action Committee (OKPLAC) - a statewide coalition of education advocacy groups.
PLAC began in Jenks over 20 years ago; and today we have more than a dozen local PLAC and affiliated advocacy groups. To provide a brief history: PLAC was established as a “nonpartisan group with the goal of increasing parent and patron awareness of legislation and issues impacting public education”. This involved educating parents about the legislative process and providing opportunities for us to build relationships with lawmakers. PLAC has evolved to also include a focus on nonpartisan civic engagement and the importance of being informed voters who vote in every election. The result is this strong, grassroots “network of networks” that exists today.
In 2009, there was a small group of Jenks parents who would come to the Capitol to speak with legislators about funding and class sizes. Oftentimes they would hear “Well, that just must be in your district because I don’t hear this anywhere else.” As they began having meetings with neighboring districts -they discovered, not surprisingly – that parents and patrons in other districts shared similar concerns. In fact, as local PLAC and advocacy groups were established in other communities across Oklahoma it became clear that rural, suburban, and urban parents were united in their concerns about class sizes, teacher shortages, and lack of resources in their children’s schools. Establishing this statewide OKPLAC coalition is helping local advocacy groups share information, advocacy resources, and have a united voice in the demand for quality public education for Oklahoma children.
In recent years, there have been remarkable changes thanks in part to the efforts of local parent-led groups doing great work in their communities. We believe the local advocacy efforts, now enhanced by the support of a broader statewide coalition, will only magnify the impact of parent advocates.
We will continue to share the advocacy efforts in local communities and the impact these groups have had. The best way to stay tuned is to follow our Facebook page. We look forward to working with this Legislature to build upon the investment which passed in 2018. Oklahoma PLAC appreciates Governor Stitt’s priority for Oklahoma to be Top 10 in Education, and we will continue to inform and engage people on the issues which contribute to reaching this goal.