Tori Collier was elected for the Office 5 seat of the Norman Public Schools Board of Education on Tuesday, defeating incumbent board president Tina Floyd.
As of 8:03 p.m., with 12 precincts reported, Collier received 66.26%, or 599, out of the 904 total votes, according to unofficial results from the Oklahoma State Election Board. Floyd earned 33.74%, or 305.
Collier is a Norman resident of 26 years and a mother of three children. She currently works as a community consultant for the Evolution Foundation, a nonprofit organization that specializes in advocacy for children, youth and families with complex needs.
Collier told OU Daily in February that her passion for education equity for all students was inspired by her oldest son, who was diagnosed with autism at age 3. She believes it is important to uplift current special needs programs in NPS but also look into ways these programs could be improved.
“I want to look at the whole thing and say, ‘Where can we do better?’” Collier said. “And really identify those (gaps) and start creating some action steps of what can be built to fill in those gaps.”
During Collier’s campaign, mental health was her top issue. Collier said she would like to implement school resources, such as a school psychologist or student-run mental health clubs, where students would feel safe sharing their struggles with mental health.
“The city pushes a lot for the resource officers and for that safety if there were an intruder,” Collier said. “I want to see us go in with just as much rigor that we do because that’s just as important.”
Floyd has been a member of the board since 2023. She was appointed after former Office 5 member Linda Sexton announced her resignation mid-term. She was elected as president of the board in April 2024.
Anusha Fathepure edited this story. Andrew Paredes, Avery Avery and Sophie Hemker copy edited this story.
