Monday, June 22, 2026 • Storms move out by morning. Cloudy and cooler. 80s. ☁️

⚾ Sooners play for national title: It’s a winner-take-all national championship game between Oklahoma and North Carolina at 6 p.m. on ESPN. The Sooners took Game 1 by a final of 9-3, and the Tar Heels won Sunday’s game 6-2. North Carolina is looking for its first college baseball national title, while Oklahoma seeks its third.

Poll results:

We received 118 votes on the Saturday poll, “Is it OK for a father to accompany his young daughter into a women's restroom when she needs assistance, provided he announces his presence first?”

• 109 said YES
• 9 said NO

New poll question at the bottom of today’s newsletter. (You can also suggest a poll question by emailing me at [email protected].)

By Nuria Martinez-Keel, Oklahoma Voice
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Touting his state’s soaring literacy scores, Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves urged Oklahoma leaders to commit to tough reading policies.

This year, Oklahoma enacted similar literacy laws as Mississippi, whose fourth-grade reading scores have surpassed the national average after decades of ranking near the bottom. The state’s meteoric rise has been called the “Mississippi miracle.”

“It really wasn’t a miracle at all,” Reeves said during an Oklahoma State Chamber event Wednesday. “It was the direct result of very good, strong policy followed by a plan to properly implement, and also — and perhaps most importantly — an accountability piece that was built into the statute.”

Mississippi began implementing significant investments and changes in its literacy laws in 2012, Reeves said. That included a controversial requirement that struggling readers repeat third grade. 

Oklahoma students will face a similar “third-grade gate” starting in the 2027-28 academic year. Third graders who score below a basic level on the annual state reading test and who fail a second standardized assessment would have to repeat the grade, unless they meet limited criteria for an exemption. 

Senate Bill 1778, signed into law in April, also requires Oklahoma public schools to provide extra tutoring, small-group reading lessons, summer academies and transitional classrooms starting in kindergarten to support students who show early signs of falling behind.

👉 Click to read the rest of the story.

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Here’s what’s happening in Oklahoma today:

• Oklahoma GOP governor race will focus on personal lives, experts say (The Oklahoman)*

• Oklahoma Primary Recap: Low voter turnout, Freedom Caucus blocked (News 9)

• Oklahoma Chronicle: Gubernatorial candidate Mike Mazzei talks after advancing to Republican runoff (KOCO)

• OKC Thunder trading Aaron Wiggins to Atlanta Hawks for NBA Draft picks, per report (The Oklahoman)*

• Oklahoma homeowners still pay the highest insurance rates in the US, 2026 study shows (The Oklahoman)*

• Injured Oklahoma hiker airlifted to safety by Black Hawk helicopter from Mount Scott (KOCO)

• Kay County fugitive arrested by FBI in Nebraska (Kay News Cow)

• Short film showcases Black history in Stephens County (KSWO)

• Rhema Bible Church releases new statement after removing Craig Hagin from ministry leadership (News On 6)

• Restaurants close after vehicle crashes into building in Tulsa (News On 6)

• Tulsa man arrested for DUI, accused of running deputy off the road (News On 6)

• J Farley's Pub in Claremore closes its doors after eight years (Fox 23)

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