Linda Murphy Announces Candidacy for State Superintendent

Linda Murphy Announces Candidacy for State Superintendent

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, April 13th, 2018 — I am filing for State Superintendent today because I believe Oklahomans want new leadership in education.  We have seen the lack of leadership over the last two weeks where the OEA union, which gave money to help elect Joy Hofmeister in 2014, took over leadership in our state capitol.

Oklahoma’s public schools can provide excellence in education when we allow teachers to teach without forcing experimental programs into the classroom.  That includes the nationalized testing, which has been implemented as part of Hofmeister’s new plan. Student testing should be academic and align with the curriculum used by the teacher.  Local schools should be allowed to make decisions about their schools, students, methods and materials.

In many schools, special education programs have suffered and must be improved. This is an area where I have been certified by the state for many years.  The developmental level of students must be understood and considered to allow them to learn to their fullest potential.

There is no “one size” fits all solution that can be mandated that will improve education.  We need to stop those mandates and the millions of dollars we spend when we try to control from the top down.

Oklahoma’s public-school funding should be directed to the classrooms.  These changes will provide an environment where students love learning and teachers love teaching!

Linda Murphy ran for State Superintendent in 1994, where she received 49.5% of the votes. She was Education Advisor to Governor Frank Keating and Deputy Commissioner of Labor for Workforce Education and Training. Linda is a founding partner in GPS -Guidance and Policy Solutions, public policy consulting group which provides solutions that help grow Oklahoma’s prosperity with smaller government and local control.