OU Student Government Association held a political forum at Gaylord College Wednesday to discuss civil issues with state and local leaders before November general elections.
At the forum, several city and state leaders were asked questions about education, housing, public safety and transportation by an audience of students and faculty.
In response to a question regarding the education of future OU students, Elizabeth Foreman, former Norman Ward 6 councilmember and candidate for State Senate District 15, said she believes the key to ensuring a brighter future in education is to stop “politicking” education.
A longtime education advocate, Foreman said she believes it is important to invest in a better public education system in Oklahoma. Foreman has over a decade of expertise in private and public sector budgeting, according to her campaign website.
“We need to stop adding things that aren't necessary, and start funding our teachers (and) funding our schools,” Foreman said.
When asked to address public transportation improvement throughout Cleveland County, Lee Copeland, director of talent and business growth at the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber, said finding a solution to public transportation is difficult because of several factors, particularly location and population.
“Let's say, a train goes from Norman to Oklahoma City. There's communities along the way, and each of them have different perspectives, assumptions, desires and outcomes,” Copeland said. “And so it makes it a complex situation.”
In response to the Norman City Council’s recent rejection of the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority’s proposed turnpike resolution, Foreman said she spoke out against the resolution and was glad it had been rejected.
Foreman also plans to continue opposing the ACCESS Oklahoma turnpikes.
“If elected, that's something I would really sound the alarm on,” Foreman said. “A lot of our state legislators are from very rural communities. They don’t understand the impact or how it would affect families in those areas.”
In response to a question regarding the ongoing safety of students and Norman residents, City Manager Darrel Pyle said the only way we can make leaps in public safety is with a fully staffed police department.
“Money is not the solution in this area,” Pyle said. “And the City of Norman, we are not fully staffed in our police department.”
Pyle said efforts to improve accountability and transparency in law enforcement are going to be ongoing with OU moving to the Southeastern Conference, and staffing, though difficult, is of the utmost importance.
“This isn't unique to Norman or the area,” Pyle said. “It's a tough job. You’ve got to work nights. You’ve got to work weekends, and most of the people you encounter, they're mad at you.”
Alternatively, Copeland encourages Norman residents to think about public safety as a result of an otherwise welcoming community.
“I think that diversion programs work,” Copeland said. “All of those drug treatments, mental health treatments, you start implementing all of those kinds of things, give people opportunities and you build bridges for people.”
In response to a question regarding the current lack of housing in Norman, Pyle said the city is updating its comprehensive land use plan to accommodate 23,000 new housing units by 2040, aiming for a population of 183,500.
Additionally, Norman is focusing on building more hotels to capture local spending from SEC events, leveraging new hotel-motel taxes to facilitate growth.
“With so many people here now, we need to be able to facilitate them here in Norman so they spend money locally,” Pyle said.
This story was edited by Ana Barboza and Anusha Fathepure. Kylie Caldwell and Sophie Hemker copy edited this story.
