Oklahoma

Oklahoma public school students could soon earn credit through ‘Satanic Temple Academy’

Published

1 year ago

June 4, 2024

Oklahoma public school students could soon earn credit through ‘Satanic Temple Academy’

OKLAHOMA CITY (KSWO) – The Satanic Temple is once again announcing plans for the Sooner State after a bill was sent to the governor’s desk which could allow students to receive class credits for religious and moral instruction off school campuses.

House Bill 1425 would force school districts to adopt a policy which allows students to go off-campus to attend a religious or moral instruction course taught by an independent entity. The student would be allowed to miss up to three class periods per week to attend such a course.

Instructors of these courses would not need to be licensed or certified teachers.

The bill’s language also states students would not be able to miss classes at their school in which the subject matter is open to assessment requirements. The student’s parents or guardians would have to provide written consent in order for the student to take the outside course.

School district funds, other than administrative costs, would not be involved in the outside instruction, according to the bill.

In response to the bill being one step away from becoming the state’s newest law, The Satanic Temple is highlighting their own learning academy that Oklahoma students could use to possibly earn school credit.

In a post on social media, the religious group stated their Hellion Academy of Independent Learning (HAIL) could soon be available for Oklahoma students.

“The Satanic Temple believes that public schools should be free from religious influence,” the post said. “We are, however, prepared to ensure our members’ children receive the same opportunities as those participating in other religion’s programs. By not vetoing HB 1425, Governor Stitt will allow the state to grant elective credit for religious and morality classes taught by The Satanic Temple, making it possible for parents to invite TST’s HAIL program to their local public schools as soon as this fall.”

The post ended with the group asking if Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt will be the first to award school credit for courses taught by The Satanic Temple.

In order for the course to be considered for credit, the course would have to evaluated based on the following secular criteria:

The amount of classroom instruction time;
The course syllabus, which reflects the course requirements and any materials used in the course;
Methods of assessment used in the course; and
The qualifications of the course instructor.

While The Satanic Temple does not believe in the actual existence of Satan or even the supernatural, they do consider themselves a religion that is divorced from superstition. The group is even already a federally recognized religious organization.

Their seven fundamental tenets are the following:

Tenet Number	Tenet Language
1	One should strive to act with compassion and empathy toward all creatures in accordance with reason.
2	The struggle for justice is an ongoing and necessary pursuit that should prevail over laws and institutions.
3	One’s body is inviolable, subject to one’s own will alone.
4	The freedoms of others should be respected, including the freedom to offend. To willfully and unjustly encroach upon the freedoms of another is to forgo one’s own.
5	Beliefs should conform to one’s best scientific understanding of the world. One should take care never to distort scientific facts to fit one’s beliefs.
6	People are fallible. If one makes a mistake, one should do one’s best to rectify it and resolve any harm that might have been caused.
7	Every tenet is a guiding principle designed to inspire nobility in action and thought. The spirit of compassion, wisdom, and justice should always prevail over the written or spoken word.

This bill is aimed at public schools, and there is a provision within the it stating charter schools would not be affected by the measure.

Found out how your Southwest-based elected officials voted on this bill below:

Elected Official	Vote
Rep. Boles (R-Marlow)	Against
Rep. Trey Caldwell (R-Lawton)	Against
Rep. Hasenbeck (R-Elgin)	For
Rep. Kendrix (R-Altus)	For
Rep. McEntire (R-Duncan)	Against
Rep. Pae (R-Lawton)	Against
Rep. Worthen (R-Lawton)	Against
Sen. Deevers (R-Elgin)	For
Sen. Garvin (R-Duncan)	For
Sen. Howard (R-Altus)	For
Sen. Jech (R-Kingfisher)	For
Sen. Kidd (R-Waurika)	For

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Oklahoma

Fields floats extending Oklahoma’s school year by 15 days

Published

6 hours ago

November 18, 2025

Press Room

Fields floats extending Oklahoma’s school year by 15 days

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — Oklahoma’s new State Superintendent is considering whether extending the school year could help boost student performance, saying students in other states are already spending more time in the classroom.

Some teachers say they’re open to the idea—but want to know whether it would actually make a difference.

State Superintendent Lindel Fields brought up the idea during a Nov. 9 appearance on News 4’s FlashPoint.

“Imagine if the Thunder practiced 15 days less than the Nuggets every year,” Fields said. “That’s what we’re doing in Oklahoma.”

He said Oklahoma students spend about 15 fewer days in school each year than those in surrounding states.

“Over a kid’s lifetime that’s an entire year less,” Fields said.

He argued that increasing classroom time could improve student outcomes.

“When you think about, maybe where we rank and how much we go to school, maybe there’s a correlation there,” Fields said. “So I think it’s a conversation worth having.”

Oklahoma special education teacher Delana Whitfield told News 4 she thought the idea was well-intentioned.

“I was like, oh, that’s interesting,” Whitfield said.

But she said she wants to see data.

“My biggest question is, is this going to make a substantial difference for these students? And if we can’t support that and provide evidence that it’s actual causation, that the 15 additional days actually provides better outcome for students and there’s not other factors, then I think we need to go back to the drawing board,” Whitfield said.

She and other educators say Oklahoma’s low test scores—especially in reading and math—may be caused by deeper issues than just the number of school days.

“I can think of other ways off the top of my head that I think could have a larger impact on student outcomes for those students,” Whitfield said. “If we had more interventionists in those areas, that we’re spending more specialized time with students that were struggling. If we were to offer more remedial classes for students that are struggling in those areas.”

A spokesperson for Fields told News 4 this week the idea is still in the very early stages—and Fields does not believe it’s the only solution that might be needed to turn around educational outcomes in Oklahoma.

“We recognize that our students currently spend fewer days in school compared to neighboring states,” the spokesperson said. “This is a very preliminary conversation about what adding days could look like.”

Fields acknowledged there would be practical challenges.

“I think most people are on board with that,” Fields said. “But like most things, it comes down to, how do we pay for that?”

Whitfield said she hopes this discussion leads to a broader plan to support students.

“If 15 days additional does show that there is a benefit to it, I think it should be a part of a larger plan because I don’t think there’s one single thing that anybody could do in any position with education that is going to make a substantial change,” Whitfield said.

Oklahoma currently requires a minimum of 165 instructional days per year.

That’s fewer than every bordering state except Colorado.

If the school year were extended by 15 days—up to 180—it would bring Oklahoma closer to the requirements already in place in Texas, Arkansas, New Mexico, and Kansas.

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