Schools & Community Engagement
Schools & Community Engagement
Schools are more than places where children attend classes. They are part of the life of our neighborhoods.
They bring families together, provide public spaces, support local jobs, and help shape the communities around them.
Decisions about schools affect everyone, including residents who do not have children attending them.
The Kendall-Whittier Residents Association wants to strengthen relationships among students, families, educators, school employees, neighborhood residents, and the organizations that serve them.
We also want to make sure residents have meaningful opportunities to participate in decisions affecting their schools and neighborhoods.
Tulsa Public Schools is preparing for major changes to school facilities and student assignments.
We want to help families and neighborhoods understand what is changing, how decisions are being made, and what those changes will mean.
This includes school transportation, staffing, student services, neighborhood impacts, and the future use of school buildings and grounds.
Children need safe ways to walk, bicycle, and travel to school.
Possible neighborhood projects include:
Walking school buses and bicycle trains.
Crossing guards and volunteer escorts.
Safety improvements at the Birmingham Avenue pedestrian bridge.
Bridge cleanup, lighting, visibility, and maintenance.
Preventing bullying and harassment along school routes.
Sidewalks, crosswalks, traffic safety, and accessibility.
We want students and families to help identify problems and develop solutions.
Teachers and school employees are members of our community.
We want to help support them, especially during school transitions, through volunteer assistance, classroom resources, shared supplies, and other forms of neighborhood mutual aid.
School employees should have a voice in identifying what support would actually be useful.
School facilities are important neighborhood assets.
We want to explore questions such as:
What happens to school buildings after they close?
Can playgrounds, athletic fields, libraries, or meeting spaces be shared with the community?
How can neighborhood residents participate in decisions about school property?
How will changes affect surrounding homes, streets, businesses, and public spaces?
What opportunities exist for community programs and partnerships?
Community engagement should mean more than attending a meeting after major decisions have already been made.
Students, families, educators, school employees, and neighborhood residents should have opportunities to help identify problems, consider alternatives, and influence decisions.
Participation should be possible in person, remotely, and at different times.
Information should be understandable, accessible, and available in languages families use.
People should not have to belong to a PTA, serve on a board, or have professional connections to be heard.
We want to encourage cooperation among public schools, private and nonprofit schools, families, neighborhood groups, businesses, and community organizations.
Possible projects include neighborhood beautification, mentoring, volunteer assistance, community gardens, shared events, historical research, and student-led activities.
Partnerships should benefit students, school employees, and the surrounding neighborhoods.
Students experience their schools and neighborhoods differently from adults.
They can identify problems with safety, transportation, bullying, facilities, and school life that adults may overlook.
We want to create appropriate, safe ways for students to contribute ideas and help shape projects affecting them.
You don't have to be a parent, teacher, or school employee to care about neighborhood schools.
Residents can contribute in many ways, including sharing information, volunteering, identifying concerns, helping with research, or simply participating in a discussion.
We want to hear from people throughout Kendall-Whittier, including those whose experiences and concerns have often been overlooked.
Our goal is not to speak for schools or families. It is to help them speak for themselves, work together, and have a meaningful role in decisions affecting their communities.