OKLAHOMA CITY — It is now state law that school children must learn about the events that occurred April 19, 1995, in Oklahoma City.
At a signing ceremony Tuesday at the Oklahoma City National Memorial, Gov. Brad Henry signed House Bill 2750 into law. The bill mandates that the Oklahoma City bombing be taught in Oklahoma, U.S. and world history classes as a required element in state curriculum.
“Although the events of April 19, 1995 may be etched in our minds and in the minds of Oklahomans who remember that day, we have a generation of Oklahomans that has little to no memory of the events of that day,” Henry said. “We are enforcing something that teachers have been explaining to their students since April 20, 1995.”
Henry said the bombing, which killed 168 people, forever changed Oklahomans, and the United States learned lessons from the events of that day.
“It told this country that terrorism can strike anywhere,” Henry said. “We owe it to the victims, the survivors and all of the people touched by this tragic event to remember April 19, 1995 and understand what it meant and still means to this state and this nation.”
The state law will not mean more content will need to be covered by teachers, but instead makes it a state requirement instead of a suggestion, said Kelly Curtright, social studies curriculum director for the Oklahoma Board of Education.
“This will not add any extra requirements to teachers nor drastically change textbooks,” Curtright said.
Henry said the new requirement would go into effect in July, causing the new addition to school curriculum to take effect this fall.
State Superintendant Sandy Garrett said school districts would not have to purchase new textbooks immediately.
“In this time of economic trouble, we don’t want to add any additional strain a district might feel to their budgets by forcing them to comply with the new law through the purchase of new textbooks,” Garrett said.
Garrett said districts facing economic trouble could consider virtual and physical alternatives to meet the new requirement.
“We are working with the museum to create a virtual field trip-like tour program that districts can use,” Garrett said. “But we are hoping that all students will have the opportunity to come out here and tour the memorial and see this place for themselves.”
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sooner12 2 years, 1 month ago
While Oklahoma is moving in the right direction, Texas is depriving its students of countless individuals worthy of being mentioned in textbooks. I would hope that there is also an addendum regarding the Tulsa Race Riots in the near future.
caitlynlacy 2 years, 1 month ago
So when are we gonna add the Tulsa Race Riot to curriculum?
TheJeff 2 years, 1 month ago
They taught the Tulsa riots at Classen.
mythman 2 years, 1 month ago
The kids born in 1995 should be freshmen in high school about now. It's weird to think that I could have an intelligent conversation with somebody who didn't experience any of this.
Also, I will second the call to add the Tulsa Race Riots.
KCurtright 2 years, 1 month ago
"Thank you" to those who are asking about including the Tulsa Race Riot in the Oklahoma Priority Academic Student Skills (PASS), the state's curriculum framework. You will be pleased to find out that the Tulsa Race Riot has been included for many years in the high school Oklahoma History PASS - since 1999 (see below #1) and the high school U.S. History PASS - since 2002 (see below #2). The Tulsa Race Riot has been in ALL of the state adopted high school Oklahoma history books prior to inclusion in the state standards of learning. Please help spread the word that this tragic event has not been overlooked and has its place in both our state's and nation's history.
The PASS curriculum framework is posted on the Oklahoma State Department of Education's Web site at http://sde.state.ok.us/Curriculum/PASS/default.html. You can access the Social Studies PASS by using the hyperlinks further down on that page. You may search the PASS for any topic by opening the PASS in pdf format and using the seach feature at the top of the Adobe Reader program.
Here are the pertinent PASS standards/objectives for both Oklahoma history and U.S. history.
Oklahoma History: Standard 8. The student will examine factors that contributed to the political, economic, and social history of Oklahoma during the twentieth century.
3. Examine the historical evolution of race relations in Oklahoma (e.g., the significance of Jim Crow laws, the Tulsa Race Riot, and the contributions of Governor Raymond Gary to the peaceful integration of public facilities).
U.S. History: Content Standard 4: The student will describe the social; cultural; economic; and technological ideas and events in the United States in the era between the World Wars. D. Describe rising racial tensions and labor unrest common in the era (e.g., the Tulsa Race Riot, the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan, the “Back to Africa” Movement and Marcus Garvey, the rise of industrial unions, and the labor sit-down strikes).
If I can be of further assitance, feel free to contact me.
Best regards,
Kelly Curtright, M.A. History Director, Social Studies Education & Personal Financial Literacy Office of Standards and Curriculum, Suite 315 Oklahoma State Department of Education 2500 North Lincoln Boulevard Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73105-4599 Phone: (405) 522-3523 Email: Kelly_Curtright@sde.state.ok.us