Marshall Stewart

In a time of cutbacks and teacher layoffs, the Jenks School District gets a gift of more than one-million dollars. The donation is announced at Jenks West Elementary. The money comes from a private fundraising effort spearheaded by parents of Jenks school children. The idea is to use the money to reduce class sizes for kindergarten through 6th grade. Danny Christner is one of those heading up the donor effort. He says this money will be used strictly for hiring more teachers to reduce class sizes, but the plan is for the private dollars fundraising to continue.

After an exhaustive investigation, authorities haven’t found anything that would have caused the mass sickness experienced at the Tulsa jail last week. Sheriff’s Sargeant Shannon Clark says no evidence of chemical or carbon monoxide poisoning has been discovered to explain what caused nearly 40 people…most of them students on a field trip…to be treated for nausea.

Advocates of cutting the state income tax quote polls showing a majority of Oklahomans favor the reductions. But a new poll released by the Oklahoma Advocacy Project shows the opposite is true, if it would mean less funding for schools, roads, and public safety.

David Blatt with the Oklahoma Policy Institute says the poll also shows many voters oppose paying for the cut by eliminating popular tax credit programs, as proposed by the Governor and legislative leaders.

Tulsa American Airlines union leaders urge members to vote on a ‘last best contract’ offer, but refuse to take a stand and encourage a vote up or down. Transport Workers Union negotiator John Hewitt calls it a concessionary contract, which means pay cuts and benefit losses no matter which way the vote goes.

Hewitt says, on the positive side, a yes vote would save about 13-hundred jobs in Tulsa. A no vote would give the bankruptcy court authority to terminate the current contract and the company would then impose new terms. Voting starts tomorrow and continues through Monday.

There are millions of dollars in projects going on in downtown Tulsa. Most of them are in the Brady Arts District, but next door, the Blue Dome area is seeing its’ share. Only blocks from OneOk Ballpark, a loft project that will include S and J Oyster Bar and Café on the ground floor is underway. Developer Michael Sager admits it’s been a challenge….he’s months behind on the loft work, but the restaurant should open soon. He calls it an example of how the heart of the city is being reborn.

A meeting will be held this week to finalize plans for upgrading security and entrances to the Tulsa County Courthouse. Plans are to boost security, improve traffic flow into the Courts, and make entrances conform to the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Commissioners’ Chief Deputy Mark Liotta says a meeting with contractors is planned later this week. Work should begin soon and is expected to be complete by the end of the year. The courthouse entrance renovation will cost about a million dollars.

(A-P Washington, D.C.)-A Canadian company that wants to build the disputed Keystone XL pipeline in the U.S. has submitted a new application for the project. The route has been changed to avoid environmentally sensitive land in Nebraska.

TransCanada filed a new application today for the project to carry oil from western Canada to Nebraska and then link up with other pipelines to carry oil to refineries on the Texas Gulf Coast. The southern part of the route passes through Oklahoma.

A special representative of the United Nations comes to Tulsa University to hear concerns of Native Americans. James Anaya is an independent expert designated by the U-N to report on the rights of indigenous people. He heard from a myriad of tribal leaders on issues from water rights and gaming to domestic violence and fears the Keystone Pipeline will disturb sacred grounds.

Several tribal leaders asked for a seat at the United Nations representing indigenous people. Anaya will file a report on what he’s learned with the United Nations Human Rights Council.

With the arrival of summertime heat, you’re reminded to never leave your child or pet in the car alone. Safety officials and medical professionals remind you summertime heat poses a deadly hazard to children or pets left in automobiles. Dr. Phil Barton with the children’s hospital at St. Francis says it doesn’t take 100 degree temperatures outside to pose a danger. He says cars heat up quickly even when the outside temperature is 75 or 80 degrees.

Interpreters who help doctors communicate with patients who don’t speak English convene in Tulsa. When it’s a life or death medical situation, communication is important. Sometimes it’s an English speaking doctor and a foreign language patient. That’s where medical interpreters come in. Louis Provenzano is President of Language Line Services…a phone network with interpreters covering more than 170 languages and dialects. He says the translators undergo about two years of training to become proficient in a language and medical terminology.