Three gubernatorial candidates played part in a noteworthy debate Thursday night at Southeastern Oklahoma State University’s Montgomery Auditorium.

The last gubernatorial debate the university hosted was held approximately 16 years ago, when former governor Frank Keating ran for the first time.

Democrats Lt. Gov. Jari Askins and Attorney General Drew Edmondson and Republican State Sen. Randy Brogdon addressed several issues, including education and water rights. Governor candidate U.S. Rep. Mary Fallin was unable to attend.

The debate was one of six scheduled debates sponsored by the Oklahoma Academy. Neal McCaleb, Oklahoma Academy president, moderated the debate. He spent 20 years in public service, including eights years in the state legislature.

McCaleb’s first question addressed how Oklahoma lags behind other states in the number of college graduates. He asked, “What initiatives will you support to help produce more graduates?”

Askins answered first, saying that the state should encourage adults as well as teens to get bachelor’s or associate’s degrees. The number of graduates affects the state’s per capita income.

Askins said she supports Oklahoma’s Promise — Oklahoma Higher Learning Access Program (OHLAP) scholarships.

According to okhighered.org, OHLAP provides tuition expenses for eighth- through tenth-grade students who complete certain program requirements while in high school: complete a specified 17-unit high school core curriculum, achieve a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA, attend school regularly and refrain from substance abuse and criminal/delinquent acts.

Askins said the state should make it as easy as possible for students to get a college degree.

“If we lure the jobs we talk about, then we can convince employers that we have a workforce in the pipeline,” Askins said.

Edmondson said the initiative should start with K-12 and pre-K education.

He noted that the number of college students who need to take remediation courses is too high, and one solution to solving this problem is offering a higher quality of K-12 education.

Edmondson said some of the initiatives he supports are OHLAP, guaranteed loans, Gear-Up and college savings plans.

Currently, only students whose families have an income of $50,000 or less are eligible for OHLAP. Edmondson said this cap does not specify the number of children in the household and should be raised or further examined.

He also said that student loans should be forgiven in whole or in part for college students who actually graduate.

Edmondson also said high textbook costs are a “burden” and a “scandal” and should be lowered. Online textbooks should be maximized to bring down this cost.

“We can’t afford not to do these things,” he said.

Brogdon took a slight jab at the current political state, saying he’s “been around whiny politicians” and “It’s kind of nice to be among adults tonight.”

In order to address the low number of graduates, Brogdon said the state must deal with the economy first and create more jobs.

He said competition in the classroom should be increased because it breeds excellence and success.

In order to curb the need for college remediation courses, Brogdon said schools need to have a stronger focus on high school education and offer more off-site online learning centers.

“I’d like to get back to student getting a four-year [college] degree in four years” rather than five to six years,” Brogdon said. “We need to lessen the amount of government when it comes to universities and education,” he said.

The second question addressed how Oklahoma ranks No. 1 in the nation in the number of women incarcerated in prison and that more effective ways are available to deal with nonviolent offenders. McCaleb asked if the candidates recognize this as an issue and how they would correct it.

Edmondson noted that Oklahoma is No. 5 in the number of incarcerations overall. The state has approximately 25,000 inmates incarcerated, and it costs $20,000 each to care for them.

“It’s a huge problem,” he said, adding that 80 to 90 percent of those incarcerated have drug and alcohol problems that have not been addressed.

Edmondson, who was a prosecutor for 10 years, said the state needs to offer more assistance and mental help for nonviolent offenders, rather than incarcerating them for many years. This would lower the spending for correctional facilities.

Brogdon said that Oklahoma’s number of incarcerated women is nearly double the national average.

Rather than jailing non-violent offenders, the state should allow them to go home and strongly monitor them. The current system has caused overcrowding in jails and more chaos than the punishment is worth, Brogdon said.

“We need to get them back in society and make them productive again,” he said.

Askins said she used to believe that prison systems had adequate programs to address inmates’ problems, but now she knows that these programs don’t really exist or help decrease the rate of repeat offenders.

“We can create the opportunity to change,” she said, using the Bryan County Drug Court system as a positive example of change.

The state needs to intervene with assistance programs before nonviolent offenders turn to violent crimes, she said. These offenders should also be reunified with their families and given a second chance.

Next, McCaleb noted that Oklahoma is blessed with an abundance of water. He asked candidates what their water plans would include and if it would include selling water to other states.

All three candidates said they are interested to see what a comprehensive water plan study shows. The study may be completed next year.

Brogdon said he is more concerned with protecting the state’s resources and that he would not sell water unless he heard a compelling reason to do so, but he hasn’t heard one yet.

“Until we know the link of our supply, I will always be opposed to selling out of state,” Askins said. “If it was an easy answer, it would have already been solved.”

Edmondson said entities are already allowed to get some water after it flows from the aquifers into the Red River, but they want water off aquifers because it is purer.

“I’ll talk about selling water after we’re sure [Oklahoma’s] needs are met for the foreseeable future. We can’t afford to waste it,” he said. “It’s the lifeblood of Oklahoma.”

Candidates also responded to a citizen’s concern about the possibly sale of Sardis Lake water rights to Oklahoma City, asking if candidates would stop the movement of water until a need is verified.

“We must accomplish a comprehensive plan,” Brogdon said. “We should protect water for citizens of this state first.”

Askin’s answer was simple: “I will use any authority I had as governor to do so.”

Edmondson reaffirmed his early statements regarding the sale of water, saying, “Yes, I would stop it.”

Also under public questions, one citizen asked candidates how they would adequately fund education.

Edmondson said the state is ranked toward the bottom on education funding and that a commitment to education is often in speech rather than action.

“We have to generate jobs and attract businesses from Michigan and California to come to Oklahoma,” he said.

“We’re a leader in wind energy,” Edmondson said, adding that the state has so much wind that it’s in the state song.

“We need to have a commitment that we are moving forward in Oklahoma, then attract businesses,” he said.

Askins noted that education funding is never an easy initiative. The number of students covered under the current funding has increased but the amount of funding “hasn’t kept pace.”

“It should always be about the students. Education is key to every problem discussed today,” she said.

Brogdon said the funding mechanism for education should be moved “away from 23rd and Lincoln” to local areas, and other states have used this type of system. Currently, local schools must ask the state agency for funding.

He emphasized that he has never supported any mandates.

In closing, Edmondson said the state can’t afford a partisan divide and needs to work together. “We need to be more concerned with headway over headlines,” he said.

Edmondson said he has taken on tough issues.

“I’m ready to fight those battles again as governor of this state,” he said.

Brogdon said he believes in limiting constitutional government and expanding individuals’ freedom.

“I’m someone with great expectations for you, someone with high hopes,” he said.

“No one person has all the answers. No one person can do it alone,” Askins said. “I enjoy trying to solve problems.”

She said education is essential in Oklahoma and that she believes the state’s focus is on the future.

The Oklahoma Primary election will be held July 27, and the general election is set for Nov. 2.

The Oklahoma Academy is a statewide nonprofit and nonpartisan membership organization founded in 1967, according to okacademy.org.