About a mile south of the State Capitol building, just off Lincoln Boulevard, is a magnificent, small institution of learning.  A special place because of the young men and women who attend and because of what they are preparing themselves to do someday.  These young men and women could find cures for disease, solve the math problems to put America back in the lead in space travel, find new renewable energy sources, negotiate international peace agreements, and teach in our best universities…the kind of young Americans who will make this a safer nation and a better world.

The school is the Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics (OSSM - pronounced “awesome”).  This residential high school for juniors and seniors from across the state is a one of a kind in Oklahoma and one of very few like it in the nation. Students from all 77 Oklahoma counties have attended OSSM. Its mission is to prepare young Oklahomans to think critically by excelling in studies of science and mathematics.  The curriculum is designed to not only immerse students into a rigorous two-year program of advanced physics, mathematics, biology, chemistry, and humanities, but also to instill in them a sense of community service and living a healthy lifestyle.  

But the story of this OSSM institution is more than just the residential campus in Oklahoma City – the center of excellence for Oklahoma science and mathematics. The OSSM curriculum in calculus and physics cascades out to 19 regional centers across the state. The regional centers use the same textbooks and follow a strong preparatory program to prepare an additional 200 plus students for success at our comprehensive universities. These students study only physics and calculus with OSSM while continuing to attend their hometown high schools for the remainder of their high school courses.

There is a final aspect to the OSSM institution which has an even greater reach than the residential and regional centers and that is the outreach program for science and mathematics teachers from across the state. By doing so, Oklahoma science and mathematics teachers have a connection to some of the best educational mentors and developers in the nation.

The holistic nature of OSSM can change the educational landscape for science and mathematics in Oklahoma, and place Oklahoma in a leadership position for the rest of the nation. We can all be proud that Oklahoma has such an institution.  It certainly speaks well for our interest in serving our nation’s need for intellectual capital.  We all should be advocates for such an educational institution.  If you believe that, let your elected officials know. 

(Ben Robinson of Oklahoma City is a retired Air Force Brigadier General and a former Commander of the 552 AWACS Wing at Tinker Air Force Base and the former Director of Operations in Oklahoma for the Boeing Company.)