sierra pfeifer

Oklahoma’s mental health department says it can’t pay its employees this month In a mounting financial crisis, the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services reported it will not be able to make payroll for its employees this month.

www.kosu.org/health/2025-...

02.05.2025 20:02 — 👍 2    🔁 1    💬 0    📌 1

Drug overdose deaths declining in Oklahoma, nationwide It’s the first time all 50 states, including Oklahoma, have seen at least some recovery from the opioid crisis that has defined much of the last decade.

some positive health news:
www.kosu.org/health/2025-...

11.03.2025 19:28 — 👍 2    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

Supreme Court throws out death sentence, murder conviction of Okla. death row inmate

BREAKING: The Supreme Court on Tuesday threw out the murder conviction and death penalty for Richard Glossip, an Oklahoma man who has been on death row for more than 25 years.

This is a developing story and will be updated.
www.kosu.org/local-news/2...

25.02.2025 15:55 — 👍 10    🔁 7    💬 1    📌 0

'Sending me home was not working': How this Oklahoma school district is reshaping suspension For many Oklahoma students, a long-term suspension is a breaking point — it can be when school stops feeling like an option. Moore Public Schools is trying to change that with a new program called STE...

Moore Public Schools has implemented an alternative to suspension: a program that brings suspended students together in a structured environment with strict rules, academic support and therapy.

KOSU's @sierrapf.bsky.social checked it out.
www.kosu.org/health/2025-...

17.02.2025 19:35 — 👍 7    🔁 2    💬 0    📌 0

What we know about how the federal funding pause affects Oklahomans A federal freeze of grant funding is creating confusion in Oklahoma’s non-profit sector, tribal nations and state government agencies.

BREAKING: A federal freeze of grant funding is creating confusion in Oklahoma’s non-profit sector, tribal nations and state government agencies.

KOSU reports on how organizations are responding to the memo.
www.kosu.org/local-news/2...

28.01.2025 21:23 — 👍 14    🔁 9    💬 3    📌 3

KOSU tagged along during Oklahoma City's Point In Time count. Here's what we saw KOSU’s mental health and addiction reporter Sierra Pfeifer followed volunteers for Oklahoma City’s annual Point In Time count. Here’s what she saw.

Every January, homeless service organizations in Oklahoma City conduct a 24-hour count of residents experiencing homelessness, known as a Point In Time count. This year, KOSU's @sierrapf.bsky.social tagged along.

www.kosu.org/local-news/2...

28.01.2025 18:59 — 👍 4    🔁 3    💬 0    📌 0

Convicted of murder as a teenager, Wayne Thompson hopes for a second chance at freedom He was 15 when he killed his sister’s abuser. Even after years of good conduct, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board has rejected recommending him for release.

Whether he gets recommended is up to the state's Pardon and Parole Board – which has seen considerable shake-up since Thompson made it through the first round in Oct.

His case will be considered tomorrow, Jan. 14, at 11:10 a.m. at the Oklahoma Health Care Authority.

To read more:

13.01.2025 19:01 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

Wayne Thompson looks out the window of the Joseph Harp Correctional Center in Lexington. Thompson was convicted of first-degree murder in 1984 for a crime he committed at age 15.

In 1983, Wayne Thompson was sentenced to death for murdering his older sister’s abuser in Chickasha, OK.

At 15, SCOTUS ruled he was too young for the death penalty.

Since then, he's spent over four decades behind bars, working towards release.

Tomorrow morning he'll make his case for parole.

13.01.2025 18:39 — 👍 4    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0

Two women sitting in chairs and smiling at the camera.

A woman kneels and sings to a woman sitting in a wheelchair.

A woman sings to a group of seniors.

A group of seniors sits in rows of chairs and sings.

Via the Songs by Heart Foundation, artists and organizers at the Tulsa Opera are able to work with seniors experiencing memory loss by leading them in song.

KOSU's @sierrapf.bsky.social reports on the program.

(Photos: Sierra Pfeifer and Abigail Siatkowski / KOSU)

www.kosu.org/health/2024-...

17.12.2024 20:03 — 👍 3    🔁 1    💬 0    📌 0

Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board will review hundreds more cases in January to catch up after resignations The backlog burdens part-time board members who are already responsible for reviewing hundreds of pages of letters and case histories before each meeting.

The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board could be forced to review as many as 550 parole cases in January.

There's been lots of coverage about how the backlog came to be, but what does it mean for the people whose cases were supposed to be heard this month?

www.kosu.org/local-news/2...

04.12.2024 23:04 — 👍 2    🔁 1    💬 0    📌 0

Your donations help me dig into public records Help The Frontier continue to report on important Oklahoma stories. Your donations are doubled now through the end of the year.

All of our stories are free to read and republish. And from now until the end of the year, your donations will be matched by the collaborative fundraising movement Newsmatch. We can earn up to $24,000 with your help.

www.readfrontier.org/stories/your...

26.11.2024 17:01 — 👍 6    🔁 1    💬 0    📌 0