At the Oklahoma Educational Television Authority (OETA), storytelling doesn’t end when the credits roll. Across Oklahoma, and increasingly, across the country, OETA’s original programming is finding new life in classrooms, where stories of the state’s people, history, and culture are helping students connect more deeply with the world around them.

Through its Education Department, OETA has transformed original productions, including Back In Time, Route 66: The First 100 Years, and Oklahoma News Report’s Black Frontier Towns series, into standards-aligned educational resources available on PBSLearningMedia.org. Today, those resources support more than 240,000 Oklahoma educators and students each year.

PBS LearningMedia is a free digital platform offering more than 30,000 classroom- ready resources, including videos, lesson plans, interactive tools, and activities, aligned with state and national standards across subjects such as social studies, science, and English Language Arts. The platform integrates directly with tools like Google Classroom, allowing educators to easily assign content and track student progress in both traditional and hybrid learning environments.

For OETA, the work represents a natural extension of its public service mission.

“Oklahoma’s stories deserve to be told and, just as importantly, they deserve to be taught,” said Darrell Strong, VP of Education. “When we take the stories we’re already telling through our programming and align them to classroom standards, we’re creating something even more powerful. We’re helping students see themselves in history, understand their communities, and engage with learning in a deeper, more meaningful way.”

From early learners building literacy skills with PBS KIDS content to middle and high school students exploring Oklahoma history through primary-source storytelling, the platform supports diverse learning styles through video, audio, lesson plans, and interactive tools. Research continues to show that PBS content improves learning outcomes in reading, science, and math, particularly in early education.

“OETA has always been committed to serving every Oklahoman,” said Shawn Black. “By investing in original programming and extending that work into education, we are strengthening classrooms, supporting teachers, and ensuring that Oklahoma’s stories are not only preserved but actively shaping the next generation.”

That commitment extends beyond classrooms and into communities.

OETA recently launched its Black Frontier Towns Community Screening Kits, designed to help libraries, educators, and cultural organizations host local screenings and conversations around one of Oklahoma’s most important – and often underrepresented – histories.

The kits accompany the award-winning Black Frontier Towns series, which explores the founding, legacy, and resilience of Oklahoma’s historic all-Black towns, more than 50 of which were established following the Civil War, with 13 still remaining today.

Each kit includes a screening DVD and digital access, a community screening guide, and promotional materials, providing everything needed to create meaningful, locally driven conversations. The guides offer historical context and discussion prompts that encourage reflection on themes of freedom, self-determination, and community resilience.

By pairing broadcast storytelling with classroom resources and community engagement tools, OETA continues to expand its reach and deepen its impact, ensuring that Oklahoma’s stories are accessible not only to viewers but to learners and communities across the state and beyond.

• To request a Black Frontier Towns Screening Kit, visit bit.ly/OETAScreeningKit.

• To view the Back In Time: Route 66 – The First 100 Years curriculum, visit bit.ly/OETARoute66.

• To view the Black Frontier Towns curriculum, visit bit.ly/OETABlack-Towns.

About OETA OETA provides essential educational content and services that inform, inspire and connect Oklahomans to ideas and information that enrich our quality of life. We do this by consistently engaging Oklahomans with educational and public television programming, providing educational training and curriculum, outreach initiatives and online features that collectively encourage lifelong learning. For more information about education curriculum and programs, local productions, digital television, community resources, and show schedules, explore OETA. tv.