Lawmakers: Concerns from business leaders may have contributed to state education leadership shakeup

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — Current and former state lawmakers say they’re happy to see Gov. Kevin Stitt remove three members of the Oklahoma State Board of Education on Tuesday, telling News 4, in their opinion, the Board and State Superintendent Ryan Walters have caused major damage to Oklahoma’s reputation among business leaders.

Stitt announced he would be replacing three of the five members of the Oklahoma State Board of Education (OSBE) in a news release on Tuesday morning.

In the release, Stitt said he made the move because Oklahoma students’ test scores have dropped and he believes the board has become too politicized, causing too many distractions.

“Nothing is more important than ensuring Oklahoma kids have the best education possible,” Stitt said in the release. “After months of headlines followed by disappointing NAEP scores this month, it’s clear that our education infrastructure has fallen prey to needless political drama.”

All OSBE members are appointed by the governor. The three members Stitt chose to remove on Tuesday were all his appointees.

The OSBE exists to serve oversight over the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) and the Oklahoma State Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Since State Superintendent Ryan Walters took office in 2023, OSBE members have rarely opposed his plans, nearly always voting in favor of them without much debate.

News 4 has reported that board members green-lit some of Walters’ more controversial policies, including the revocation of certain teachers’ teaching certificates, approving his request of the legislature to provide $3 million to purchase Bibles to place in public school classrooms, and approving several controversial new administrative rules.

Former Republican State Rep. Mark McBride, a frequent critic of Walters, said he believes the board has enabled Walters to do real damage to Oklahoma’s education system.

“From the Bibles to… the rulemaking authority that he supposedly thinks he has, supporting that and backing that agenda and just all of his crazy agendas that that he’s had,” McBride said.

McBride and State Sen. Mary Boren (D-Norman) both told News 4 that Walters and the board’s leadership have raised concerns among business leaders, who tell them the state education system’s reputation gives them pause about locating in Oklahoma.

“Every one of them is very concerned about education, Oklahoma, about bringing new people in for new jobs,” McBride said.

“All of the negative press that we’ve been getting through the State Department of Education and Ryan Walters has really impeded the ability of those that want to attract business to Oklahoma,” Boren said.

Stitt seemed to share those concerns in his news release on Tuesday, writing:

“If we want to be the best state for business, we need to make sure our kids have a path to success. It’s time for some fresh eyes and a renewed focus on our top ten goals.”

Additionally, News 4 confirmed on Tuesday that OSDE and its communications director, Dan Isett, parted ways on Monday.

Boren said many legislators had grown frustrated with Isett, who she says often failed to communicate and share information with them.

“There’s not a person over at the State Department of Education that I can feel comfortable reaching out to,” Boren said. “And the kind of communication that we get from them is filtered through folks like Dan. And so there needed to be a change in heart and a change in attitude from the State Department of Education.”

Boren said the timing of Stitt’s decision to shake up OSBE raises some questions for her.

She says, recently, legislators have raised bipartisan concerns over Stitt’s priority to expand the Oklahoma Parental Choice Tax Credit—a program that gives state money to families to send their children to private schools.

Boren said lawmakers have been hesitant to expand the program if Walters and the current state school board remained in charge and continued to go unchecked.

“I do think everybody is tired of the drama, like his statement said, but I hope it's not a pretext for some kind of other deal that's being transacted in order to increase vouchers or some of the other priorities that the governor has said that he's had in the past,” Boren said. “So hopefully it's really workforce development related and he has an opportunity to keep the school board focused on getting students ready for the workforce and to be good neighbors in our in our state. And I hope that with this change that we can turn the page and move forward as a state."

Walters responded to the shakeup on Tuesday, posting the following on X, formerly Twitter:

“Governor Stitt has joined the swampy political establishment that President Trump is fighting against. The board members that stood with us, working with the Trump Administration to make our schools safer and better, have been fired for political purposes. Every Oklahoman should be clear this move undermines Oklahoma kids and parents and an America First agenda. Stitt believes that the federal government, and not the people, need to continue to control our country. This is disappointing but not surprising. We’ll keep fighting for school choice, parents, kids, and our teachers.”

McBride says Walters’ response makes him feel there’s still more action needed in order to meaningfully reign Walters in.

“Bringing Trump into it again, I mean, this guy does nothing, but I mean, he must have an idol of Trump in his bedroom closet or something,” McBride said. “I just think it shows a very immature, unprofessional person… We’ve got to get through this next two years and get rid of him and have somebody good come in behind him to rebuild education.”

Stitt’s newly appointed board members must still go through a vetting process and meet with lawmakers before they can be confirmed by the Senate, which could take several months.