OSDE says goodbye to Bible mandate, eyes Social Studies Standards next

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) - The new Oklahoma State Department of Education is turning away from many of Ryan Walters' mandates, including the mandate that every class have a Bible and teachers teach from it.

"I am very pleased to see the superintendent abandon the anti-woke culture war. It didn't work for Ryan Walters, and it's not a good look going forward," said A.P. U.S. History teacher Aaron Baker.

Baker was one of many teachers who got the Trump Bible. That is the Lee Greenwood God Bless the USA Bible that costs over $60 per purchase.

When Walters was still superintendent, he used just under $25,000 to purchase around 532 of them. That was the legal amount he was allowed to use without getting permission from lawmakers.

Walters then tried getting $6 million approved in last year's budget to try to buy as many as possible to achieve his mandate of "putting a Bible in every class in Oklahoma."

That didn't happen and isn't going to happen. The new Superintendent, Lindel Fields, announced that they aren't mandating that and, in fact, they are going back on much of what Walters mandated.

"Superintendent Fields has no plans to distribute Bibles or a biblical education curriculum," said interim Communications Director for OSDE Tara Thompson.

"It's a blessing and it's the right thing to do, but we should've never been put in this situation in the first place," said Baker.

This decision came about a day after a judge said that the department had to decide in two weeks concerning a lawsuit surrounding the Bible mandate. That judge gave them the option of dismissing the mandate altogether, and that's what has happened.

Thompson said that the department has its sights set on the controversial Social Studies standards next.

There is currently a lawsuit surrounding those as well; it could go in a similar direction, just in a different fashion.

"We are asking if we are spending taxpayer dollars wisely and as good stewards. And if the answer to that is no, then we need to start looking at rescinding or making changes to things that have been put in place," said Thompson.

Every six years, Oklahoma picks new social studies standards to then adapt to new textbook purchases. Lawmakers, board members, and many taxpayers expressed concern with the ones that Walters put forward, specifically that he added last-minute, which included the Bible teachings and the election conspiracies.

The cost for the textbook process, especially with new criteria like the conspiracy theories and the bible stories, ended up being around $33 million, according to lawmakers earlier this year.

The department was asked what would happen here, and Thompson said, "We are still in limbo on that as well. We are asking what guidance we give districts. Is it to revert to those 2019 standards, I don't know."

News 4 asked Thompson on Wednesday about the partnership with PragerU. If the Bible mandate is being reversed, as well as the religious curriculum. Then what about the many projects Walters announced in partnership with PragerU, a Christian conservative media company?

"We have yet to find a PragerU contract, so I'm continuing to investigate that because I'd like to be able to give you that definitive answer. Is there a contract? Is there anything, or was it just conversations in the media? I haven't found a contract yet," said Thompson.

The department's attorney said that they will respond to the Bible mandate lawsuit before the end of the week, and then the opposition has ten days to respond.

"The Bible was not a problem in my classroom. It has a place, and I found a place for it. It's not part of my instruction, but I have lots of books in my classroom," said Baker.

The department said they don't know about the next steps, whether they will have districts return the Bibles or let them keep them. Thompson said that, for the most part, Superintendent Fields is headed more towards giving more power and control to the local school districts.