If you want to improve public education in Tulsa, vote for Tim Harris in District 7 of the Tulsa School District on February 8.

Most people know him from his long tenure as Tulsa County District Attorney. He retired but he didn’t retire from wanting to serve the public.

Harris has taught law at Oral Roberts University. He took a position with the Tulsa County Sheriff’s office as a counsel.

A devout Christian, Harris has taught Sunday School at his church for decades. He decided to the run for the open seat on the TPS Board because God had prompted him toward public service.

In all his years, Harris has had a special spot in his heart to help children. As DA, he dealt with crimes against children that would tear at your heartstrings. He sought justice and he made Tulsa a safer place for kids.

There is no upside for Tim Harris to sit on the Tulsa School Board. It is not a political stepping stone – quite the contrary, membership on a school board usually ends political ambitions.

There’s no monetary advantage. And if you do the job right – and you can bet Tim Harris will – it is a tremendous drain on your free time.

Public education is a mess. Liberals dominate the administrations and school boards. Progressive Democrats and the teacher unions have strategically taken control of the education of our young people and they are headed in the wrong direction.

They push the woke culture. They promote racism and revisionist history. They teach dependence on government and a decline in the influence of parents and families.

With the help of activist judges, they have whittled away Christian influence and cultural morality from public schools.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

The first step is to elect Tim Harris and likeminded public servants.

The National Education Association and the Oklahoma Education Association have disproportionate influence on politics in Oklahoma, especially in the Legislature. Democrat lawmakers march in lockstep with the OEA and the truth is that most Republican legislators are scared to death of the teacher unions (and the media).

That is why we have school board elections in February – a strategy that almost guarantees a low voter turnout and gives disproportionate impact to the OEA and its minions.

If the school board elections were held in November, when we vote for president or governor or senator, the vote count would be much, much bigger.  By the way, the same is true for school bond issues. Bixby is asking property owners for $110,000,000.00 on February 8 and it will be a low turnout for an enormous amount of money to borrow.

So, school board elections are crucial. And honestly, it’s hard to find out any pertinent information about candidates. In fact, our research this year showed several candidates that had no public information available. None at all.

Take a look at ivoterguide.com for help.

It takes some work to be an informed voter.

The Tulsa Beacon tries to put forth as much information as possible but there are too many candidates in too many school districts in Tulsa County to cover all of them. We hope the information we do provide is helpful.

And honestly, sometimes over the past 20 years we have made mistakes in our endorsements of candidates. We were fooled by people who had good backgrounds and who sincerely ran on a platform that seemed good for our schools.

The proof is in their actions.

What happens in most school districts is that you have either a strong superintendent with a weak board or a strong board with a weak superintendent. It’s almost always a strong superintendent with a weak board.

When I say a “weak board,” it’s one where members show up for meetings and are handed a summary sheet by the administration. With little discussion and hardly any public debate, the board sheepishly votes for the recommendations of the superintendent because they have no facts to challenge his or her policies.

And school attorneys almost always side with administrators when it comes to important decisions.

A good school board member digs into finances and policies and forces administrators to answer tough questions.

That’s the kind of school board member Tim Harris will be. And given his legal expertise, it would be harder for an attorney to rubber stamp the superintendent on policies like mask mandates, school closings, personnel, etc.

Everyone needs accountability and someone who loves children and the law like Tim Harris is the perfect fit. He has pledged to put in the time to make a difference.

Vote for Tim Harris on February 8 for District 7 of the Tulsa School Board.