State School Supt. Ryan Walters continues his antics rather than being focused on leading the State Department of Education and trying to provide the best education system possible.
His latest ploy is recording a video of himself praying and directing school superintendents across the state to show it to their students and to send it to their parents.
From the information we’ve seen, most of the school superintendents are simply ignoring this ludicrous demand.
Our first question is how is this relevant to the education our students are supposed to be receiving in a public school and, secondly, why does Walters continue sending out directives that he has no business trying to enforce?
He continues to utilize state resources for his own personal agenda, which only serves as a distraction to the constituency he is supposed to serve.
Once again he has overstepped his authority by making such demands of our public school officials.
Back in August, Meeker’s Board of Education took decisive action when its members voted unanimously in directing its School Superintendent, Jeff Pruitt, not to follow memorandums from the State Department of Education regarding Walters’ Bible mandate.
In essence, the board told Walters that the Meeker School District is not going to follow the unconstitutional mandate requiring the Bible and Ten Commandments be incorporated into the curriculum of all classrooms from grades 5-12 beginning this school year.
State Attorney General Gentner Drummond told Walters several months ago he doesn’t have legal authority to set curriculum. That responsibility lies with local school boards, he has asserted, and that is as it should be.
The Constitution is more important than Walters’ his political agenda and pandering.
Oklahomans deserve better from their State School Superintendent than the nonsense he keeps dishing out.
This video he recorded of himself praying for 90 or so seconds and demanding that it be sent out so students and parents can view it has no bearing on what teachers and students should be doing in the classroom.
All Walters continues doing is promoting himself rather than what he should be doing and that is his job leading the State Department of Education as we stated earlier.
We wouldn’t even try to anticipate what his next antic might be, but rest assured it’s doubtful that it has any significance to improving Oklahoma’s educational system.
Think back a moment to earlier this year, when he attempted to order some library books be jerked out of the Edmond School District. That brought a lawsuit and the State Supreme Court overruled him, saying that decision lies within local school boards.
He gave some teachers bonuses, then ordered they pay them back. What a fiasco that caused.
Our students and teachers deserve better than what they are receiving from Oklahoma’s top elected education official. Parents should start demanding that Walters focus on what his job really is.
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