Oklahoma City Public Schools opened two new learning spaces this school year: a dual-language elementary school teaching students in both Spanish and English, and a College and Career Center at John Marshall Enterprise High School where teenagers can fly drones through an obstacle course, train in flight simulators, and practice healthcare skills on modern long-term care setups.
Adelaide Lee Elementary School currently serves pre-K and kindergarten students, with plans to expand grade by grade up to fourth grade, according to KOCO. The school teaches its youngest learners in both English and Spanish, a dual-language model designed for a district where Hispanic students make up between 54% and 57% of total enrollment, the largest demographic group in OKCPS, per the OKCPS Foundation. More than 15,000 district students are bilingual and over 12,000 are English Language Learners, with nearly 40% of families speaking Spanish as their primary home language at home, according to the same foundation data.
The new elementary campus consolidates student populations from both the original Adelaide Lee Elementary and Shidler Elementary, a merger tied to 2023 structural issues discovered at Shidler's 1930s-era campus, according to the Oklahoma City Free Press. The building itself was designed with young learners in mind, featuring a two-story atrium with a learning staircase, a secure vestibule, an administration suite, and a modern media center, according to OKCPS bond project documentation.
A Career Hub Built for Aviation, Healthcare, and Teaching
Across town, the 20,000-square-foot College and Career Center at John Marshall Enterprise High School gives students a very different kind of classroom. The facility includes an aviation lab stocked with flight simulators and an obstacle course built for drone-flying practice, alongside healthcare training areas equipped with modern long-term care setups, per KOCO's report. The center also offers programs in aviation, healthcare, and teaching, letting students earn industry certifications and college credits while still in high school.
Kate Haydon-Emerson said students will be able to earn industry certifications and college credits while planning for graduation, according to KOCO reporter Kilee Thomas. The John Marshall center is one of six new career-focused high school facilities built across the district, alongside similar hubs at Capitol Hill, Douglass, Northwest Classen, Star Spencer, and U.S. Grant high schools, according to OKCPS bond program materials. The John Marshall building was designed by Studio Architecture, P.C. and built by Nabholz Corporation.
Funded by the District's Largest-Ever Bond
Both facilities trace their funding back to a $955 million bond package that more than 60% of voters approved across two propositions in November 2022, the largest bond in OKCPS history, according to the Oklahoma City Chamber. To keep the sweeping construction schedule on track for an August 2026 completion target, the OKCPS Board of Education approved a $500 million lease-purchase agreement with the Oklahoma Industries Authority in April 2024, according to KGOU.
The openings arrive amid a shift in district leadership. Dr. Jamie Polk, who was promoted to superintendent in May 2024 after Dr. Sean McDaniel's departure, oversaw the final execution and fall 2026 launch of the bond projects. That leadership transition follows the more recent departure of longtime Board Chair Paula Lewis, who resigned after a decade on the board in July after moving outside district boundaries, having overseen both the bond's passage and its early rollout.
With the buildings now open, the district's next test may be staffing them. OKCPS will need to recruit and retain enough qualified bilingual teachers and specialized career instructors to fully staff the expanded dual-language and workforce programs it just built.
