Former OU President David Boren Endorses Drew Edmondson For Governor

Thursday, September 6th 2018, 4:11 pm

By: News On 6

Former Oklahoma Governor and President of Oklahoma University David Boren announced his endorsement of gubernatorial candidate Drew Edmondson on Thursday.

At a press conference, Boren touted Edmondson’s commitment to teachers.

“When our teachers stood up for better funding for our children, Drew stood shoulder-to-shoulder with them,” Boren said. “We don’t have to guess about what kind of governor Drew would be. Drew Edmondson is exactly what we need. He has both the good judgment and political courage to make critical investments in our future.”

Edmondson recently completed a series of meetings with teachers across the state where the Democrat nominee heard from educators about their priorities for Oklahoma education.

“We met with teachers, parents, early childhood educators and administrators and asked them how to improve our schools,” Edmondson said. “While we know funding is a top issue, we wanted to hear about issues other than more dollars.”

During those meetings, educators listed class sizes and teacher shortages among the top priorities for the state. Educators told Edmondson that while technology is an important tool for learning, books are still necessary because laptops and tablets are of little use to students who do not have internet access at home. They also want more opportunities for professional development and a review of our current state testing requirements.

“Above all, teachers say they feel a lack of respect for their profession, which I believe is a result of the deliberate indifference to the plight of our schools over the last eight years,” Edmondson said. “We can change that. These ideas, which come directly from teachers, won’t cure all our education ills, but they are a good place to start.”

Edmondson faces Republican Candidate Kevin Stitt and Libertarian candidate Chris Powell in November.