Not enough Oklahoma adults who hold at least a bachelor’s degree is holding the state back economically, and part of the issue is the quality of students coming out of the state’s common education system, University of Oklahoma President Joseph Harroz said Wednesday.
Speaking during the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber ’s annual State of the Schools event — along with new Oklahoma City Public Schools Superintendent Jamie Polk — Harroz said while the state is positioned geographically for growth, its total education system, including higher education, needs to drive that growth by constantly striving for improvement.
“There are a lot of headwinds that still exist,” Harroz said. “We look at it, and our students, as they’re coming out of common education — although it’s being remedied, I can tell right now — the numbers are a problem. When you look at those students that are qualified under the ACT standards, that are college-ready in all four ACT subjects, it’s not a good picture. Of those students, we’re 43rd in the nation. We’ve got a long way to go in making sure our students are ready to come.”