April 3, 2020
ImpactTulsa Partners and Community Members,
Tulsa County is coming together in unprecedented ways that are putting the needs of community members first in the face of COVID-19. We continue to be inspired by you all and are extremely grateful to be partners with you in this work.
We are continually working with partners to compile and align resources, and we sincerely thank all who contributed information and updates. If you have a resource to share or are releasing news updates, please email us at info@impacttulsa.com so we can add your information to next week’s resource round-up.
Tulsa County School Districts + Non-Profit Leaders Collaborative Sessions
To remain in contact and support each other with resources, ImpactTulsa has created Google Groups mailing lists for the four resource areas identified in our partner call last week. You can join a Google Group by clicking the links below. Click here for a step by step tutorial on how to join Google Groups without a Gmail address. Feel free to share this email and the links below to invite others to join the group(s) as well.
- Education and Distance Learning
- Virtual collaboration offered Thursdays at 8:30am – beginning April 9th
- Themes that the group identified include: access to technology, teacher capacity, curriculum options, and delivery of services.
- Virtual collaboration offered Thursdays at 8:30am – beginning April 9th
- Food and Meal Options
- Virtual collaboration offered Tuesdays at 10:00am – beginning April 7th
- Themes that the group identified include: meal access & transportation, strengthening staff/organizational capacity, information access, and resource mobilization for children and families.
- Virtual collaboration offered Tuesdays at 10:00am – beginning April 7th
- Family Resources
- Virtual collaboration offered Tuesdays at 8:30am – beginning April 7th
- Themes that the group identified include: mental health and domestic violence services, childcare, transportation, technology, basic needs, and supporting ELL families.
- Virtual collaboration offered Tuesdays at 8:30am – beginning April 7th
- Communications
- Virtual collaboration offered Thursdays at 10:00am – beginning April 9th
- Themes that the group identified include: intentional planning of communication, access to tools and technology, and the ability to share the most relevant news in clear and concise ways to meet the needs of students and families.
ImpactTulsa Partner Attendance Works Hosting Free Webinars
Attendance Works is hosting webinars on Reducing the Adverse Impact of the Coronavirus on Students and Families and Leading Virtual Learning Communities: Facing the Challenges of COVID-19. Space in both events is extremely limited, so make sure to register through the links above.
City Year Tulsa
City Year Tulsa honored ImpactTulsa Executive Director Carlisha Williams Bradley during their virtual celebration on April 1. Congratulations to City Year on a successful event and to Carlisha for this honor.
New York Times Op-Ed
ImpactTulsa Leadership Council Chair Mayor G.T. Bynum published an Op-Ed in the New York Times on Wednesday about his experiences so far leading during a pandemic. Read the piece here.
Governor Stitt Declares Statewide Health Emergency
A new executive order from Gov. Kevin Stitt on Thursday declares a health emergency in all 77 Oklahoma counties for the next 30 days. He also has called lawmakers back to the Capitol for a special session starting 8 a.m. Monday to address the health emergency. Read the latest here.
Oklahoma State Department of Education
For the latest Oklahoma State Department of Education updates, please visit their website. For answers to frequently asked questions, please refer here. For information on how to engage families during this time, check out their resources here.
Mayor Bynum Appears on ‘TODAY’
Mayor G.T. Bynum joined Craig Melvin on TODAY to talk about his decision to issue a stay-at-home order. Watch the clip here.
Tulsa World
Mayor G.T. Bynum: Tulsans are prepared because we’ve been tested again and again throughout our history. Read his op-ed here.
Free Meals Now Available to All Students
State Superintendent Joy Hofmeister said approval just came down from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to allow free breakfast and lunch for every Oklahoma public school student and any school site that chooses to participate.
Teachers and Students Adapt to New Normal
As Oklahoma public schools adopt distance learning models to both continue to educate students and protect against COVID-19, the word “distance” hits hard for teachers and students, alike.
Global Messaging Around COVID-19
From Iran to Vietnam, from Guatamala to Senegal, public service announcements are using music, cartoons and creative video to share messaging.
Let’s Talk Public Forum with Gov. Stitt Tomorrow
The Tulsa World’s “Let’s Talk” virtual town hall will continue Friday with guests Gov. Kevin Stitt and Dr. Kayse Shrum. Shrum is Oklahoma’s secretary of science and innovation and is the president of OSU’s Center for Health Sciences.
Six Month Student Loan Deferment passed by Congress
THE CORONAVIRUS AID, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act, will help most federal student loan borrowers by temporarily pausing payments – including principal and interest – on federally held student loans through Sept. 30. Read more.
Center for Reinventing Public Education (CRPE)
CRPE is tracking what school districts are doing nationwide in response to COVID-19. Click to view their database, which currently presents information for 82 districts, aiming for a range in size and geography, and serving nearly 9 million students.
Williams Foundation Pledges $1 Million
Williams announced Tuesday that The Williams Foundation has pledged $1 million to provide community support during this unprecedented time of financial volatility and global health concern. Read their release here.
Click below to be directed to the following resource pages on our website:
If you have a resource to share or are releasing news updates, please email us at info@impacttulsa.com so we can add your information to next week’s resource round-up.