Dear Editor: In response to the Supreme Court’s argument on religious public schools, April 30: To students of Colonial American history and the Bill of Rights, this is a potential big deal and worthy of attention. Colonial Baptists, Quakers, Presbyterians…
Now Ryan Walters wants Oklahoma students to study alleged fraud in 2020 election
Already the most ridiculed man in public education, Ryan Walters isn’t yet done making a spectacle of his far-right agenda. The Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction now wants to rewrite U.S. history lessons to accommodate Donald Trump’s lie that he…
Robert Morris indicted on child sex abuse charges in Oklahoma
Robert Morris, founder and former pastor of Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas, and previous adviser to President Donald Trump, was indicted on five felony counts of lewd or indecent acts to a child. The charges relate to alleged child sexual…
Oklahoma Supreme Court blocks Bible curriculum for now
The Oklahoma Supreme Court has temporarily blocked state school officials from purchasing Bibles and Scripture-based instructional materials for use in public school classrooms. The March 10 order bars Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters and the Oklahoma State Department…
In a year of voucher mania, a controversial federal plan emerges
Donald Trump and congressional Republicans already intent on spending tax dollars on private education want to go even further by creating billions in new federal tax credits to school voucher programs. Newly introduced legislation would provide $10 billion in annual…
Here’s a new way they’re selling Trump Bibles
The push to place Bibles in every public school classroom in Oklahoma has a new funding mechanism. Lee Greenwood’s Bibles for USA has launched a website where individuals may donate the $59.99 required to purchase a so-called “Trump Bible” that…
Oklahoma and Utah consider far-reaching ‘conscientious objection’ bill for medical providers
Oklahoma and Utah are among the latest states with proposed legislation that would allow health care providers to refuse specific procedures, care or medication based on vaguely defined moral, religious or conscientious beliefs. So-called “conscientious objection” laws are not entirely…
Oklahoma parents sue Walters to stop Bible curriculum in schools
The families, teachers and religious leaders already suing to block Oklahoma from buying classroom Bibles are now attempting to prevent the state from purchasing a Scripture-based curriculum for elementary school children. The plaintiffs filed a brief with the Oklahoma Supreme…
US Supreme Court says Oklahoma Death Row inmate deserves new trial
Capital punishment opponents are rejoicing after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Oklahoma Death Row inmate Richard Glossip must receive a new trial in the 1997 killing of a motel owner in Oklahoma City. But death penalty abolitionists also acknowledge…
Now Ryan Walters seeks bids for Bible-based curriculum in Oklahoma
The Oklahoma Department of Education has opened the bidding process for a Bible-based curriculum designed for public elementary school children, according to a newly posted Request for Proposal. The move comes as state Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters deals…
Oklahoma governor shakes up State Board of Education
Is it political theater or real change in Oklahoma public education? That’s the question at the heart of a shakeup Gov. Kevin Stitt made Feb. 11 by removing three members of the Oklahoma State Board of Education and nominating replacements…
Supreme Court will hear Oklahoma charter school case
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to decide the constitutionality of using taxpayer dollars to fund a religious K-12 charter school in Oklahoma. The justices announced Jan. 24 they will review a June 2024 Oklahoma Supreme Court ruling determining the…