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Tulsa University lays off 47 employees

Tulsa Beacon

The University of Tulsa laid off 47 employees across various departments and cut retirement benefits for those who kept their jobs. Officials are blaming the Chinese coronarvirus pandemic. TU officials said the layoffs would save about $2.4 million a year. Earlier, some athletic coaches had their pay cut by 10-15%. TU will suspend employer retirement…

Contract to expand animal shelter

Tulsa Beacon

Officials have signed a contract with Tulsa-based GH2 Architects to design a new, expanded animal shelter for the City of Tulsa. The $4.7M shelter expansion project was approved by voters in both Improve Our Tulsa programs. The city plans to expand the facility at 3031 North Erie Ave. to include city-owned land to the south,…

Mullin speaks with tribal leaders

Tulsa Beacon

WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Markwayne Mullin, R-Oklahoma,  and leaders of the Muscogee (Creek), Choctaw, Cherokee and Seminole Nations have reacted to the Supreme Court’s decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma affirming tribal sovereignty. Since the Supreme Court’s ruling in McGirt v. Oklahoma regarding the Major Crimes Act (MCA), there have been many questions and concerns regarding…

No early voting set at Hardesty Library

Tulsa Beacon

Tulsa County Election Board Secretary Gwen Freeman said early voting will be available for the August 25 election at the Election Board Office at 555 N. Denver Ave. but unlike earlier elections, the Hardesty Library will not be available due to the coronavirus concerns. Early voting will be from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. August…

SQ805 on Nov. 3 ballot

Tulsa Beacon

Gov. Kevin Stitt has officially placed State Question 805 – which would liberalize prison sentences in the state – on the November 3 ballot. The question was submitted by an initiative petition. In recent months, Oklahoma has released hundreds of so-called “non-violent” criminals. Supporters of State Question 805 want to further empty Oklahoma prisons.  District…

Helping state students

Tulsa Beacon

Gov. Kevin Stitt announced the Bridge the Gap Digital Wallet initiative is now available to Oklahoma families. Bridge the Gap is a new initiative that will connect up to 5,000 low-income Oklahoma families with $1,500 grants to purchase materials for students ahead of the 2020-21 school year. Bridge the Gap is an initiative that will…

Tulsa gas prices rise

Tulsa Beacon

Tulsa gas prices have risen 8.3 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $1.82/gallon Monday, according to GasBuddy’s daily survey of 321 stations. Gas prices in Tulsa are 6.2 cents per gallon lower than a month ago and stand 37.4 cents per gallon lower than a year ago. According to GasBuddy price reports, the…

OBU back on campus

Tulsa Beacon

Oklahoma Baptist University in Shawnee welcomed students to campus this month ahead of the start of the fall semester, including 427 freshmen and 56 transfer students. Upperclassmen Welcome Week Workers began moving in at the beginning of the week, with new students moving in Aug. 5-6. Welcome Week activities then ran through Aug. 9, before…

Chinese coronavirus may be losing its grip on Oklahoma

Tulsa Beacon

There are signs that the Chinese coronavirus pandemic is over the latest surge in confirmed cases and is declining. The number of confirmed cases in Oklahoma dropped by 27% from July 31 to August 6. And deaths dropped by 3.4% statewide in that time period.  The Oklahoma State Department of Health reported 393 new cases…

No classroom instruction in TPS

Tulsa Beacon

In response to the Chinese coronavirus pandemic, Tulsa Public Schools will open the school year without students in the classroom but will rely on them learning electronically at home. School begins on Monday, August 31, and will continue without students in classrooms for at least nine weeks (around the end of October). Officials are leaving…