Originally published in News Channel 8 Tulsa on January 27, 2023
TULSA, Okla. (KTUL) — Parents have a lot of options beyond their neighborhood school.
On Thursday, the Greenwood Cultural Center held a one-stop shop for parents hoping to find the right fit for their children.
It’s the catchphrase that’s all the rage in education, “school choice,” and it was on full display at the Greenwood Cultural Center.
Some of those choices? Bishop Kelley…
“A great, quality education from honors classes down to classes that fit every educational need,” said Patti Bush, a spokesperson for Bishop Kelley.
“Drexel was born out of the need of students in north Tulsa, underprivileged students,” said Karen Pittman, a spokesperson for Drexel Academy.
And the virtual public charter, E-school.
“It’s very important for the message to get out that school choice isn’t deciding between public or private. There’s a lot of school choice inside the public setting as well,” said Robbie Rainwater, a spokesperson for E-School Virtual Charter Academy.
What’s Buchert family looking for in a school?
“I guess that’s what we’re looking for, flexibility,” said Kendall Buchert, a mother who attended the expo with her husband and kids.
She says they’ve had less than satisfactory experiences with TPS.
“You know we tried public school, I’ve been home schooling for three years now, and we really just need a way to combine the two,” said Kendall.
And over near the booth for Insight Virtual School.
“She’s making new friends online with her classes, and she’s doing awesome,” said Miranda Rossouw, who drove in from Shidler with her daughter to attend the expo.
Miranda and her daughter are from Shidler and went online when the local public school wasn’t working out.
“I was really glad to go to home schooling because I got bullied a lot,” said Angel Randol, Rossouw’s daughter.
School choice, more than a catch phrase, a landscape.
“The landscape of education is changing. Kids needs are much more diverse than they were 20 years ago,” said Lindsay Maricle, a spokesperson for the School of St. Mary.
To learn more about Insight School of Oklahoma, visit https://insightok.k12.com/
