Can OSDE mandate schools teach the Bible, Supt. announces new requirement

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) - An Oklahoma State Department of Education memo, a press release, and an announcement at a meeting reported two different directives Thursday. Both addressed the Bible in Oklahoma Schools.

State Superintendent Ryan Walters said during the monthly board meeting that "every district and every classroom will have a Bible in the class and they will teach from that Bible." Supt. Walters called it a "historical document that needs to be taught."

A memorandum he said was sent to all districts said that "effective immediately, all Oklahoma schools are required to incorporate the Bible, which includes the Ten Commandments, as an instructional support into the curriculum across specified grade levels, e.g., grades five through 12."

Then there was a press release with the headline "Walters Requires Bible be Taught in Oklahoma Classrooms."

So, is the Bible required to be in classrooms and be taught or is it required to be incorporated into instruction?

News 4 asked the Oklahoma Attorney General for a statement on Thursday, to which he replied, “Oklahoma law already explicitly allows Bibles in the classroom and enables teachers to use them in instruction.”

A spokesperson for the AG, Phil Bacharach, said that the quote was used about the memorandum sent out to districts that the Bible be incorporated into class instruction, not that it is required to be taught.

Essentially since 2019, it has been accepted by law that a Bible could be taught in its historical context. When it comes to requiring schools to do that, it becomes a different situation.

Just a couple of weeks ago, the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled that local school boards have the final say to determine which books and instructional materials are deemed to be appropriate in Oklahoma classrooms.

However, it took thousands of dollars in attorney fees to come to that conclusion. That was an opinion that was given over a year ago by the Oklahoma AG and many lawmakers said that OSDE spending money throughout that case was a waste. If a "requirement" is made of the Bible, officials said that would be yet another waste of taxpayer dollars.

"Did you guys even read the Ten Commandments," said Vice Mayor of The Village Sean Cummings during public comment. "Do any of you know any of the Ten Commandments at all? I didn't think so."

"I just wanted to thank you Superintendent Ryan Walters for showing us what true leadership is," said a public commenter who agreed with putting the Bible in classrooms.

"It is a shame and it is disappointing and it's frustrating," said Senator Mary Boren.

Senator Boren had attended the meeting because former Norman teacher Summer Boismier was having a vote on whether the board would validate her teaching certificate. The board voted to not do that in the end. Boismier was called "too woke" by Supt. Walters months ago and she was a teacher located in Senator Boren's district.

"But when I saw what was happening, it shocked me," said Senator Boren. "Unfortunately his (Supt. Walters) stubbornness to not follow the constitutional law and the fact that we are spending a lot of valuable time having unnecessary legal battles when we could be serving students, that's what has me worried."

Senator Boren said that she was turned away from being a part of the closed Executive Session during Thursday's meeting—something she said is against Oklahoma law.

"Given that I sit on the Education Appropriations and Budget Committee that pays for the attorney fees that deal with all of the unsuccessful lawsuits they entangle themselves in, I need to be in there," said Senator Boren.

“Given the highly authoritarian approach of the State Board of Education to crush the rights of parents, teachers and readers, it is warranted that a state senator should observe executive sessions. Observation is the basic tenant of accountability to ensure state officials uphold both the U.S. and Oklahoma Constitutions in their proceedings. Failing to comply with the Open Meetings Act nullifies the actions of the Oklahoma State Board of Education and invites judicial scrutiny.”

State Senator Mary Boren

Americans United for Separation of Church and State, a nonprofit civil liberties group, said in a statement that Walters’ new Bible policy is “trampling the religious freedom of public school children and their families.”

“This is textbook Christian Nationalism: Walters is abusing the power of his public office to impose his religious beliefs on everyone else’s children,” Rachel Laser, the group’s CEO, said in the statement. Her organization is “ready to step in,” she wrote, though she stopped short of vowing legal action. The group has already sued to block a new Louisiana law requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public schools.

The Oklahoma chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-OK) responded by saying, "Today condemned as a “clear violation of the Constitution's Establishment Clause” the new Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) requirement that all Oklahoma schools incorporate the Bible as instructional support into classroom curriculum."

Representative Mickey Dollens (Oklahoma City) has spoken out several times when putting up the Ten Commandments has been suggested as a requirement. Thursday, he said, "Requiring a Bible in every classroom does not improve Oklahoma's ranking of 49th in education. Ryan Walters should focus on educating students, not evangelizing them."

KFOR tracked down Dan Isett, the Communications Director for OSDE but was quickly turned away. Isett said he would not communicate with KFOR.

Incorporating the Bible and the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms in Oklahoma isn't anything new. If schools are forced to teach the Bible and the Ten Commandments, that would be a different story and it is unclear if that is the route Supt. Walters and OSDE are taking.