oklahomawatch.org – Paul Monies and Valerie Scott – 2025-07-07 06:00:00
After extensive debate, Oklahoma enacted Senate Bill 139, instituting a statewide bell-to-bell ban on cell phones and smart devices like smartwatches and tablets in schools for the 2025-26 year. Exceptions apply for emergencies and health monitoring. The law, championed by Sen. Ally Seifried and Rep. Chad Caldwell, was supported by studies showing benefits like reduced distractions and cyberbullying. Schools must develop their own disciplinary policies. Districts like Tulsa and Norman are adjusting or planning implementation, with efforts to communicate clearly to stakeholders. A $500,000 grant program is available to help districts comply. Lawmakers hope most districts continue the ban beyond its first year.
by Paul Monies and Valerie Scott, Oklahoma Watch July 7, 2025
After two years of legislative discussion and debate on the distractions of cell phones in class, Oklahoma schools have months to implement a bell-to-bell ban on devices for students during the upcoming school year.
Senate Bill 139, signed by Gov. Kevin Stitt in May, also prohibits the use of smartwatches, smart headphones, personal laptops, tablets and smart glasses.
The bill’s Senate author, Sen. Ally Seifried, R-Claremore, said the legislation transformed from a voluntary pilot program when she first introduced it in the 2024 session to the statewide ban now in place.
“I thought it would take two to three years and I’d come with data and then I’d have to really convince people,” Seifried said. “But I think there’s some momentum nationally and even in Europe, they’re banning some of their phones in schools as well.”
Rep. Chad Caldwell, R-Enid, who co-authored SB 139, said a two-day legislative study in fall 2024 provided the evidence to advance a statewide policy for banning cell phones during the school day. Presenters discussed both academic studies and the experiences of school districts that already had cell phone bans.
“When you combine the real-life stories and examples that we’ve seen here in Oklahoma with those larger data points that have been done in a university setting, it paints a pretty clear picture of the benefits of this type of policy,” Caldwell said.
While the bill mentions a bell-to-bell ban, it allows for some leeway in special circumstances. In an emergency, students may use their cell phones, and those who use smart devices to monitor health conditions also have an exception.
Though most districts are on summer hours, the school year is just right around the corner and some schools like Mustang, Tulsa, Pryor and Stillwater have yet to put any policies in place.
Caldwell said he knew the compressed timeline could put additional pressure on schools, but he said the policy was discussed at length in the Legislature and received extensive media coverage. He said clear, consistent and frequent communication from districts to parents, students and staff will be key to successful implementation.
Well before the statewide law, in downtown Oklahoma City, John Rex Charter Schools maintained a cell phone ban, so the policy did not come as a surprise to parents or students, said Patrick Duffy, superintendent at John Rex. The school cut back on screen time as issues of cyberbullying and social anxiety become more frequent.
“Before, our policy was not districtwide and did not include items like smart watches, tablets or headphones, but very similar with no phones during the day, allowing more time for face-to-face interactions, more time to focus on academics and minimizing cyberbullying,” Duffy said.
For districts with an existing cell phone policy, the new law could mean just a few tweaks to put the bell-to-bell ban in place. Tulsa Public Schools has had a telecommunications policy for several decades, but rolled out a major change last year that put a bell-to-bell ban on devices in elementary and middle schools. It called the policy Phones Away, Just for the Day. High schools phone use was banned only during class. Tulsa’s board has yet to vote on an updated policy for all schools in the district.
Other districts, such as Norman Public Schools, have been planning for months and are taking steps to get staff, students and parents on board.
Courtney Scott, communications director for Norman Public Schools, said their online campaign is called Power Down to Power Up. The district hopes to get students in gear to put down the phones and engage in classrooms, but also wants to be clear on what will happen and why.
Norman began considering a cell phone ban in January as suspicions about the law’s passage intensified, Scott said. Next, principals were asked what needs must be met in order to implement this policy. After collecting feedback from two student groups and a survey sent out to parents, the district began going over the law in detail, assessing the requirements and guidelines. The Norman school board approved the policy in June.
Schools Decide Discipline
The bill also requires schools to establish their own disciplinary procedures for students found using smart devices.
Oklahoma City Public Schools approved the cell phone ban on June 30 in a 5-1 vote. The lone no vote came from Mike Shelton, a former Democratic state lawmaker. Shelton said he didn’t appreciate the mandate from the Legislature and was worried about discipline being consistent throughout the district.
At Moore Public Schools, students can receive detention the third time they’re caught with a cell phone. For a first violation, the device is taken away and returned to the student at the end of the day. For a second violation, a parent is asked to retrieve the phone during school hours.
John Rex Charter School takes a different approach to discipline.
“No suspension would be involved,” Duffy said. “If we send students home that would defeat our purpose and goal of always having students present in the classroom.”
Equipment Grants Available
In the final weeks of the legislative session, lawmakers approved a $500,000 grant program to help school districts offset the costs of equipment needed to implement the ban. The grant, administered through the Office of Educational Quality and Accountability, is taking applications until July 14. Districts must commit to a three-year, bell-to-bell phone ban to qualify for the grants, which will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.
Some districts, such as Oklahoma City Public Schools, have asked their principals and administrators to provide updates on implementation at the end of the calendar year and after spring break in 2026. Similarly, districts that received state grants for equipment such as pouches or lockers will be surveyed on how the bell-to-bell device ban is faring.
The new law allows school districts to keep or modify the bell-to-bell cell phone ban for the 2026-27 school year. Seifried and Caldwell, the bill’s authors, said they hope districts will recognize the benefits of a ban and keep it in place.
“I truly believe the overwhelming majority of districts are going to see some extremely positive results from this and parents will see the benefits not only for their kids but for the school community as a whole with improved interaction, a decrease in behavioral issues and bullying,” Caldwell said.
Seifried said discussions with district officials since the end of the session have been positive. Many superintendents and principals appreciate the law starting with a total ban, as it takes the heat off local officials.
“I’ve talked with school teachers and school board members and superintendents who said, ‘I really, really believe in this policy, but I would get eaten alive if I had to do it. We’d really like the state to be the bad guy, so to speak,’” Seifried said. “That’s why I changed my mind and went to a statewide approach.”
Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Center-Right
This article reports on a newly enacted Oklahoma law banning the use of cell phones and smart devices in schools during the day, with details on legislative sponsors, implementation, and school district responses. The coverage emphasizes the law’s benefits on academic focus, behavioral improvements, and reduced cyberbullying, largely reflecting perspectives from Republican lawmakers and school officials who support the ban. The tone is generally factual but highlights the positive outcomes envisioned by proponents, aligning with conservative priorities on discipline and education policy. There is minimal critique or counterbalance from opponents, aside from a brief mention of one dissenting vote, suggesting a moderate right-leaning framing.
Republican Rep. Tom Cole, serving Oklahoma’s 4th Congressional District since 2003, plans to run for a 13th term, motivated by his influential roles on the House Appropriations Committee. Oklahoma’s delegation holds unprecedented power, with Cole as chair, Rep. Stephanie Bice as vice chair of a subcommittee, and Sen. Markwayne Mullin as a Senate appropriator. Cole emphasizes his commitment to protecting federal funding vital to Oklahoma, which relies heavily on federal grants. He has actively defended local facilities from budget cuts and maintains bipartisan relationships. Cole’s campaign is financially strong, preparing for the 2026 election, with a final decision expected by April 2026.
by Em Luetkemeyer, Oklahoma Watch July 30, 2025
Republican Rep. Tom Cole, who has spent more than 20 years in the House, says he is planning on running for a 13th term, in large part because of what he and other members of the Oklahoma delegation are able to deliver now that they’ve accumulated more power.
Oklahoma, he said, is “probably better positioned on this committee than we’ve ever been as a state,” due to his own chairmanship, rising power in Rep. Stephanie Bice’s position as vice chair on an appropriations subcommittee, and Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s perch as a Senate appropriator. Cole is expected to have at least one more term as Appropriations chair, as long as Republicans retain the majority.
“I like to work,” Cole said. “This is an extraordinary opportunity, a great privilege to have. I think we’re able to do some pretty important things for Oklahoma.”
Though he hasn’t come to a final decision on his 2026 election plans, the 76-year-old said after an eight-hour appropriations bill markup last week that the committee motivates him to stick around.
“I have a federal-heavy district in a pretty federal-heavy state, so there’s lots of things we can do to protect and advance the interests of the state, and we’re not shy about doing that,” Cole, who has been in office since 2003, said.
Oklahoma’s state government received more than 40% of its revenue from federal grants in 2022, ranking as the 13th highest recipient state.
Cole has repeatedly stepped in this year when major cuts to federal funds have threatened facilities in his district that he finds valuable. For example, he said DOGE was responsive to him when he negotiated to keep several federal operations safe from cuts in his district.
Cole said he will make a final decision on whether he will run for reelection between January and the filing deadline in early April of 2026. In the 2024 election cycle, Cole claimed victory in a five-way Republican primary for Oklahoma’s 4th Congressional District, defeating businessman Paul Bondar, who gave his campaign about $5 million of his own money.
Cole spent about $3 million on the race, but he had six times as much cash on hand as Bondar.
This time around, Cole’s campaign is in an even stronger position, he said.
As of June 30, his campaign had $2.5 million in cash on hand, compared to the almost $1.8 million he had at the end of 2024, according to FEC filings.
“We certainly are preparing as if we’re going to run,” Cole said. “I think if you look at our finances, you’d find they’re in pretty healthy shape. I think we raised more money last quarter than we have in any quarter ever, and I think we have more cash on hand than we certainly had last time around, having gone through a self-funder.
“We’re getting ready,” he said.
In Congress, Cole has a reputation for reaching across the aisle as a negotiator. He’s kept friendships with Republicans and Democrats alike, notably with Democratic Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the ranking member of Cole’s committee, as the institution has increasingly become more bitter and partisan.
“I love the members I get to work with, I love the staff that I have and get to work with both in the personal and the Approps office, and I love the challenge,” Cole said. “We’ve got both Houses and we’ve got a Republican president, so not that it’s not challenging, but it’s fun.”
Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Center-Right
The content largely focuses on Republican Representative Tom Cole, highlighting his long tenure, leadership roles, and efforts to bring federal resources to Oklahoma. It portrays him in a positive light as a pragmatic legislator who works across the aisle while emphasizing his alignment with Republican Party priorities, such as maintaining federal funding for state interests and Republican leadership in Congress. The tone is factual and respectful, with no overt criticism or partisan rhetoric. The Center-Right rating is due to the subject matter centering on a Republican official’s perspective and accomplishments, without strongly framing issues through an ideological lens.
www.thecentersquare.com – By Andrew Rice | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-08-19 17:06:00
Oklahoma will require teachers relocating from California or New York to pass a 50-question certification exam on American citizenship, religion, gender, and government to ensure their values align with the state’s. Oklahoma Superintendent Ryan Walters criticized New York and California’s teaching standards as opposing Oklahoma’s, citing California’s stance on biological sex differences. The exam, developed with Prager University—a nonprofit used by ten other states—covers constitutional knowledge and U.S. government structure. Teacher union leaders, including Randi Weingarten and Cari Elledge, condemned the move as politically motivated, arguing Walters should prioritize student education over political agendas.
(The Center Square) – Oklahoma will begin requiring teachers who move to the state from California or New York to pass certification exams proving their values align with Oklahoma’s.
The test reportedly contains 50 questions on American citizenship, religion, gender and makeup of the U.S. government.
Ryan Walters, the Oklahoma superintendent of public instruction, said teaching standards in New York and California are “antithetical” to Oklahoma’s standards. He said an example of this is California requiring teachers to assert there are no biological differences between sexes.
“We want to make sure, as we are recruiting the best and the brightest in the country, that they align with our values,” Walters said.
Walters said the state is working with the nonprofit organization Prager University, which produces educational materials, to conduct the exam. Ten other states, including Florida, Idaho and South Carolina, use educational materials provided by PragerU.
Some of the questions on the exam reportedly include:
What are the first three words of the Constitution?
Why is freedom of religion important to American identity?
What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?
How many U.S. Senators are there?
Why do some states have more Representatives than others?
Randi Weingarten, president of the union American Federation of Teachers, criticized Walters’ decision in a statement.
“His priority should be educating students,” Weingarten said of Walters. “But instead, it’s getting Donald Trump and other MAGA politicians to notice him.”
Cari Elledge, president of the Oklahoma Education Association, agreed. She told USA Today the decision by the Oklahoma Department of Education was made as a “political stunt.”
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Center-Right
The article primarily reports on the new teacher certification exam in Oklahoma and includes statements from both supporters and critics of the policy. While the piece presents factual information about the exam and quotes from Oklahoma’s superintendent of public instruction, it also highlights the involvement of PragerU, a conservative educational organization, and includes critical responses from union leaders who frame the policy as politically motivated. The language used to describe the exam and the inclusion of critiques suggest a slight lean toward a Center-Right perspective, as it emphasizes conservative values and the alignment with Oklahoma’s standards, but it also fairly presents opposing viewpoints without overt editorializing. Overall, the article reports on ideological positions without strongly promoting one side, though the framing and source choices indicate a moderate conservative bias.
Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin has twice violated the STOCK Act by late-disclosing nearly three dozen stock and bond transactions worth $1.4 to $3.5 million. These tardy filings follow previous delays of up to two-and-a-half years. Mullin’s office attributes the delays to amendments for accuracy and states an independent firm manages his portfolio, reporting bi-weekly to Senate Ethics. Numerous lawmakers from both parties have also violated the STOCK Act recently. In response, bipartisan bills have been introduced to ban or restrict congressional stock trading, with some progress in the Senate and expressed openness from leaders, though no full votes have occurred yet.
by Dave Levinthal, Oklahoma Watch August 15, 2025
For the second time in two weeks, Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin has disclosed trades showing that he violated a federal conflicts of interest and financial transparency law.
A NOTUS analysis of a financial document Mullin filed Tuesday with the U.S. Senate revealed the Oklahoma lawmaker was months late disclosing nearly three dozen stock and bond transactions by him and his wife.
Taken together, the transactions — mostly sales — are worth between $1.4 million and $3.5 million. Lawmakers are only required to disclose the value of their trades in broad ranges.
The late disclosures follow an earlier slate of hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of tardy stock and municipal security filings — some up to two-and-a-half years past a 45-day deadline enshrined in the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act — that Oklahoma Watch reported Aug. 5.
As it did last month, Mullin’s office declined to answer specific questions about the late filings and emailed Oklahoma Watch the same statement about the senator’s finances.
“Much like tax returns, financial disclosures occasionally need to be amended to reflect the most accurate, up-to-date information,” said a Mullin spokesperson. “That’s what we did here.”
Mullin uses an independent, third-party operator firm that manages all stock portfolio investments on his behalf. He does not conduct nor inform trades. The independent firm reports bi-weekly to Senate Ethics to ensure compliance with federal law, the spokesperson added.
Dozens of other federal lawmakers — Democrats and Republicans alike — have violated the STOCK Act’s disclosure provisions in recent years. The latest example — Democratic Rep. Shri Thanedar — told NOTUS that he is in the process of selling off his individual stocks.
Federal lawmakers have introduced several bills this year that would ban, or otherwise restrict, members of Congress and their immediate family from trading individual stocks.
The measures have attracted an unlikely coalition of Republicans and Democrats. Together, they broadly argue that the current STOCK Act is too weak to adequately defend against the specter of insider trading and conflicts of interest and too permissive toward lawmakers who violate — sometimes repeatedly — its transparency and disclosure provisions.
One such bill, the Halting Ownership and Non-Ethical Stock Transaction Act, advanced last month out of a Senate committee thanks to Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri teaming with the committee’s Democrats.
President Donald Trump has said he’s open, in principle, to signing a congressional stock-trade ban, although he’s warned Congress that he doesn’t want the ban to extend to the White House.
Both House Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries have expressedopenness to a congressional stock-trade ban. But no such bill has yet received a vote in either the full House or Senate.
Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Center-Left
This content critically examines Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin’s violations of financial disclosure laws, highlighting concerns about transparency and accountability. While it notes that lawmakers from both parties have committed similar infractions, the framing emphasizes ethical shortcomings within the Republican ranks and points to bipartisan legislative efforts to tighten regulations. The tone is investigative and somewhat critical of political corruption, aligning with a Center-Left perspective that values government oversight and reform without overt partisan bias.
