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State Superintendent Ryan Walters rubs elbows with Moms for Liberty [1]
['Carmen Forman Tulsa World']
Date: 2024-03
OKLAHOMA CITY — State Superintendent Ryan Walters told a national audience that the U.S. Department of Education should be eliminated because he thinks the federal government is bullying school districts and pushing socialism in classrooms.
In speaking at Moms for Liberty’s national summit in Philadelphia, Walters criticized the federal government’s involvement in education, endorsed the idea of moving Oklahoma’s school board elections and railed against teachers’ unions.
The fast-growing parents’ rights organization founded by conservative mothers in Florida has been labeled an “anti-government extremist” group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. The SPLC said Moms for Liberty fights inclusion in schools and compared the group to parents who pushed to resegregate schools during the civil rights movement.
Walters praised Moms for Liberty and compared the group to the nation’s founding fathers.
“You are the most patriotic, pro-American group in the country right now,” he said Friday.
Walters spoke at the summit as part of a 40-minute panel discussion on the future of education. A spokesman for Walters did not respond to a question about whether the superintendent used taxpayer funds to cover the costs of his travel and lodging for the trip.
Walters received the greatest applause when he took the federal government to task. He said the U.S. Department of Education, which is led by an appointee of President Joe Biden, will do anything to bully and intimidate schools while pushing a socialist agenda.
“The federal government comes up with a new initiative every few years,” Walters said. “They give you some money and they think they can control states and schools. It is absurd. It is ridiculous.”
Each year, Oklahoma receives hundreds of millions of dollars in federal education funding that helps with day-to-day school operations. Walters has been critical of federal funding opportunities that come with strings attached and directed the State Department of Education to pass on grant opportunities that don’t align with “Oklahoma values.”
Rep. Mickey Dollens, D-Oklahoma City, said Walters’ comments left him stunned.
“Just when I think he couldn’t possibly be more foolish, he goes and does something like this,” Dollens tweeted.
Walters did not address a scathing audit released this week that indicated that millions of dollars in federal pandemic relief funds earmarked for education were misspent when he was serving as the state’s secretary of education.
At the summit, Walters also said he supports changing the dates of Oklahoma’s school board elections to increase voter turnout.
GOP state lawmakers have unsuccessfully tried in recent years to move to November the general elections for school board seats. Four years ago, lawmakers moved school board elections so they would occur at the same time as municipal elections, meaning primary elections occur in February and general elections are held in April.
“We are going to make school board elections great again,” Walters said. “We are bringing a lot of attention to the school board races. We are working on moving the election dates so that they’re more prominent.”
The Oklahoma State School Boards Association has opposed legislation to move the election dates yet again, saying party politics could creep into nonpartisan school board races if the elections coincide with partisan general elections in November.
Moms for Liberty has made a concerted effort to increase the number of conservatives running for school board seats. The group also made a name for itself by challenging COVID-19 precautions in schools, speaking out against critical race theory, and targeting school materials referencing race and gender identity.
Moms for Liberty has Oklahoma chapters in Tulsa, Garfield and Canadian counties.
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[1] Url:
https://tulsaworld.com/news/state-regional/education/state-superintendent-ryan-walters-rubs-elbows-with-moms-for-liberty/article_70dd99d2-1770-11ee-8cb0-5ff2a9a3ba7e.html
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