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Michael Overall
michael.overall @tulsaworld.com 918-581-8383
Attorneys challenge anew an Edmond soldiers conviction of murder in a combat zone. A12
A change in state law meant to end social promotion of public school students has the Tulsa school board considering a policy revision. Recent amendments to Oklahomas Reading Su ciency Act call for retaining students who are found to have reading deciencies
on state tests during the 2013-2014 academic year. This had to be added into district policy because of the change in state law. There are several options for remediation, but these kids who will be in third grade next year have to have that reading prociency to meet these requirements, said Steve Mayeld, interim chief of sta at Tulsa Public Schools.
or above grade level by the end of their third-grade year. The latest amendment, sponsored by Sen. Clark Jolley, REdmond, and Rep. Sally Kern, ROklahoma City, is aimed at ending social promotion, or the consideration of a childs social and psychological well-being, in addition to academics, in deciding whether to promote them to the next grade. The Reading Su ciency Act, The policy change the Tulsa which has undergone several school board will be taking up at a amendments since being enacted meeting set for 6:30 p.m. Monday by the Legislature in 1997, already SEE EXEMPT A12 mandates that all students read at
Steve Mayeld: The interim chief of sta at TPS says there are several options for remediation but the requirements must be met.
PROFICIENCY
Eric Widger Sr., a beneciary of Legal Aid, stands in front of his north Tulsa house. The nonprot group, which provides free representation to people who cant a ord an attorney, helped Widger settle a lawsuit with a roong company. CORY YOUNG/Tulsa World
In defense of fairness
knew I wouldnt be able to a ord an attorney. To defend themselves, Widger and his wife spent several hours in a library, searching through law books and trying to understand the relevant precedents. But we were going to lose no matter what, he said. When you dont have a lawyer, the system is stacked against you. The Widgers wound up with their bank account frozen. And they expected to spend the rest of their lives hopelessly in debt, until a relative told them to call Legal Aid. I had never heard of it, Widger said. I had no idea there was anything like it out there. Funded by a hodgepodge of grants, donations and taxpayer money, Legal Aid main-
Bills came in the mail every once in a while, asking Eric Widger to pay for work that a roong company had never nished. Insurance was paying for damage from the 2007 ice storm, but the roofers wanted more money. And when he wouldnt or couldnt pay, they walked o the job. I had already paid half up front, Widger said. They werent getting any more. But eventually, instead of another bill, he got a court summons. The roong company was suing him and his wife for $20,000. They knew I was on disability, said Widger, who su ers from epilepsy while raising two teenage children with autism. They
tains 21 o ces across the state with 65 attorneys on sta . But thats not nearly enough to keep up with demand, so some cases get farmed out to Cesar Tavares and other private lawyers, who waive their usual fees. All the work is done pro bono, or free of charge, for low-income families and senior citizens. In a criminal case, you have the right to an attorney, Tavares explained. And if you cant a ord one, the court appoints one for you. In civil cases, however, defendants have no such right. If you cant a ord an attorney, he said,
SEE LEGAL A12
The reason I became a lawyer was to help people. Obviously, thats why I went to law school. And here was a chance to really do it, to really help somebody. CESAR TAVARES, attorney
Family and Childrens Services is expanding its Child Abuse and Trauma Services program to include in-home child trauma treatment. The new initiative is designed for families who have barriers preventing them from consistently attending o ce appointments. Lack of transportation, the inability to miss work and a ording child care for siblings are some of the biggest barriers, said Christine Marsh, director of Child Abuse and Trauma Services at Family and Childrens Services.
SEE HOME A12
Smoking, obesity and inactivity remain key factors in the states poor health ranking.
BY TIM TALLEY
Associated Press
OKLAHOMA CITY A stateby-state ranking of Americas health puts Oklahoma 43rd in the nation in the wellness of its citizens, and Dr. Terry Cline says thats good news for a state that was ranked 49th when he took over as state health commissioner in 2009. The bad news, Cline says, is that Oklahoma is still in the bottom 10 in health rankings nationwide,
pulled down by high rates of smoking, obesity and sedentary lifestyles that result in thousands of premature deaths every year. You dont need to be dying in your 50s and 60s. How do you change that norm? Cline said. If youre in the bottom ve, even in the bottom 10, that to me is alarming. My goal is to get us out of the bottom 10. Cline, a clinical psychologist who serves as Gov. Mary Fallins secretary of health and human services, is spearheading the Oklahoma Health Improvement Plan, a blueprint for
improving health that encourages Oklahomans to eat better, move more and become tobacco free. The good news is those are all things we can inuence, Cline said. They drive health outcomes. The 2012 health rankings were released last month by the United Health Foundation, a nonprot, private foundation dedicated to improving health and health care. Oklahomas ranking of 43rd is the second worst in the seven-state region. Arkansas ranked 48th. The other bordering states were healthier, including Texas, ranked 40th, and Colorado, which was ranked 11th the highest health ranking in the region. Cline, 54, said improving the states health ranking relative to
other states is not a competition to see which state will claim the top ranking, which in 2012 went to Vermont. But it is a race because our lives depend on it, said Cline, an Ardmore native who has been involved in public health issues for more than 20 years. The implications are really serious. It has very serious, dire consequences. Cline is a former state secretary of health and commissioner of the state Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services who left those positions in 2006 to become the head of the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
SEE HEALTH A12