General Discussion

In recent years, Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters has cultivated a reputation as a right-wing Christian nationalist — even some Republicans have expressed discomfort with his radicalism — prompting discussion among legislators in the state about possible impeachment proceedings.

Evidently, that won’t be necessary: Walters is resigning. NBC News reported:

Oklahoma Superintendent Ryan Walters announced Wednesday that he would step down from his role overseeing the state’s schools to lead the conservative group Teacher Freedom Alliance, saying, ‘We’re going to destroy the teachers unions.’ ... Teacher Freedom Alliance confirmed Walters’ new role as CEO, saying in a post to X that he ‘fearlessly fights the woke liberal union mob.’

Whether anyone will miss Walters is a subject of debate......

Last month, Walters created a new “America First” teacher certification test for educators who move to Oklahoma from blue states, intended to ensure that they have the proper ideology before entering classrooms; and this month, he announced a plan to establish chapters of Charlie Kirk’s Turning Point USA organization at every high school in the state.

What Walters did not do, however, is succeed in his given task: According to one recent report, Oklahoma is currently ranked 50th in education performance.

His resignation comes roughly two months after an investigation began into Walters allegedly having images of naked women on his office television during a state board of education meeting. It was later resolved without charges.