Oklahoma City Public Schools and the planned Oklahoma Public Montessori Initiative have mutually agreed to rescind OPMI’s charter contract, which had been under heightened scrutiny as the school failed to make progress toward opening in time for the 2025-2026 school year.
After a notice alleging breach of contract was approved by the OKCPS Board of Education on June 2, issues characterized as “irreconcilable” in a rescission and release agreement came to a head at the board’s Monday meeting. Members voted 7-0 to rescind the contract. Although District 1 OKCPS Board member Carole Thompson previously told The Oklahoman that she was “appalled” by members of OPMI’s board, she was absent from Monday’s meeting.
OKCPS Board Chairwoman Paula Lewis issued a statement regarding the rescission.
“Earlier this year, questions arose regarding the ability of the Oklahoma Public Montessori Initiative to secure appropriate classroom space in time to open a Montessori charter school for the 2025-2026 school year,” Lewis said. “While securing space was a primary challenge, there were additional factors that made it difficult to meet the established timeline requirements. Because of these challenges and the potential impact on students and families, the district recommended a review of the agreement. After thoughtful consideration, both Oklahoma City Public Schools and Oklahoma Public Montessori Initiative have agreed that it is in the best interest of all involved to mutually end the agreement.”
FROM 2023
Of 4 charter school proposals, OKCPS board rejected highest-scoring applications by Bennett Brinkman & Tres Savage
Rico Smith, the chairman of OPMI’s board, confirmed the rescission was mutual and said the nature of the planning process and uncertainty over whether an additional planning year would be possible hindered the school’s progress.
“Throughout this process, we have remained deeply committed to bringing a high-quality, authentic Montessori option to families in our community,” Smith said. “Our board has worked diligently over the past year — expanding our team with members who hold direct Montessori experience and certifications, strengthening our educational model and identifying several promising school facility locations.”
The mutual rescission enables OPMI to explore opportunities that align with the school’s progress and vision, Smith said.
OPMI leaders had the right to appear in front of the OKCPS Board after the notice of alleged breach of contract was sent this summer, but they did not.
In Oklahoma, charter schools can also be approved by universities, tribal governments and the Statewide Charter School Board, although OPMI likely faces an even steeper uphill battle to move forward after failing to open under OKCPS authorization.
OKCPS Board approved OPMI despite low evaluations
Had it opened, OPMI would have become Oklahoma City’s first public Montessori school.
Montessori schools provide a different learning environment for students, which typically features kids of different ages in classes with the same teacher for three years at a time. Students in Montessori classrooms are encouraged to explore things that interest them and often learn through hands-on instruction.
During the board’s June 2 meeting, OKCPS general counsel Tony Childers highlighted gaps in the proposed school’s readiness that included: insufficient facilities, frozen expenditures and financial restrictions, a lack of leadership and a shortage of board members. According to Childers’ June 2 presentation, OPMI had three members on its governing board, but the OKCPS charter school policy requires five.
The issues identified at the June 2 meeting were present in the district’s analysis of the school before the OKCPS Board approved it in November 2023. OPMI’s approval that month came amid a series of votes in which other proposed charter schools — all on Oklahoma City’s historically Black eastside — were denied by the OKCPS Board. OPMI was proposed to serve northwest Oklahoma City and Nichols Hills.
At the time, OPMI scored as bad or worse in a district analysis than the three other charter schools up for approval. On a zero to four scale, OPMI received a “zero” score for facilities, a “one” for transportation, a “one” for child nutrition services and a “one” for finance.
Nonetheless, District 2 board member Lori Bowman, District 6 board member Juan Lecona, and District 7 board member Meg McElhaney voted alongside Thompson, Lewis and former board member Mark Mann to approve OPMI on Nov. 27, 2023. Bowman, who supported denying the application in the first of three votes, said she was looking for innovation after voting to approve the application in 2023.
“I think we have got to look at what is innovative about these applications and what [would be] offered through these charters that is not currently being offered in OKCPS,” Bowman said following the 2023 meeting. “We can use these as a laboratory for learning about what works, what families want and what benefits Oklahoma City kids.”
Bowman declined to comment on the rescission of OPMI’s contract following Monday’s meeting. Board member Dana Meister, who succeeded Mann in District 4, also declined to comment.
OPMI was proposed to serve parts of Oklahoma City and its enclaves, including Nichols Hills, The Village, Quail Creek and Chisholm Creek. The school never operated, so no students were enrolled, according to Crystal Raymond, OKCPS’ director of strategic communications. In lieu of the rescission, OKCPS opened two additional classrooms, which are fully enrolled, at Horace Mann Elementary to “ensure families have meaningful educational opportunities,” Lewis said.
While OPMI would have been Oklahoma City’s first public Montessori school, others are looking to fill the gaps. Founded in part by Millwood Public Schools Superintendent Cecilia Robinson-Woods, P3 Urban Montessori is expected to open in fall 2026, according to its website. During the November 2023 meeting in which it approved OPMI, the OKCPS Board rejected P3 Urban Montessori’s application. P3 Urban Montessori subsequently was approved by the Statewide Charter School Board in March and proposes serving students in part of northeast Oklahoma City from age 3 through kindergarten.
Rise STEAM Academy, whose application to OKCPS was also initially rejected in December 2023, was later approved by the board in January 2024. The school is open and serving elementary students from parts of northeast Oklahoma City.
(Correction: This article was updated Tuesday, Sept. 16, to correct reference to OPMI potentially being the first Montessori school in Oklahoma City.)
