BIXBY, Okla. (AP) 鈥� Oklahoma's Bixby school district has lots to show off for a fast-growing Tulsa suburb: a state-of-the-art new high school set to open by 2025, a new ninth grade gymnasium and plans for a $12 million upgrade to a football complex that already rivals that of many small colleges.
But, what the district does not have as students returned this week is a Bible in every classroom 鈥� despite a to incorporate Bible lessons and promises of repercussions for those that don't comply. Other large school districts have also publicly indicated they aren't making changes either.
The resistance follows a summer order that propelled Oklahoma to the center of a growing push by conservatives to give religion a bigger role in public schools across the U.S. Still, the fight may be far from over while other states, including neighboring Texas, are seeing Republicans advance into classrooms.
鈥淚f there is no curricular standard that ties with that particular classroom, what would be the purpose of a Bible if not for pure indoctrination?鈥� said Bixby Superintendent Rob Miller, a former Marine Corps artilleryman whose office walls are adorned with medals from some of the 18 marathons he鈥檚 run and a sign that reads: 鈥淧ositive Vibes Only.鈥�
Miller said it鈥檚 not uncommon to see students carrying a Bible or praying during a moment of silence at the start of each school day. Two copies of the Bible are available for checkout in the high school library鈥檚 reference section, along with a book titled 鈥淭he History of the Bible鈥� that includes maps and other historical details about the holy lands featured in scripture.
But he said a Bible simply doesn鈥檛 make sense for a seventh grade math classroom or a high school chemistry class.
鈥淎s a Christian myself, I am a little offended by diminishing the word of God to a mere classroom prop," he said.
It is unclear how many, if any, Oklahoma school districts are resuming schools this month with a Bible in every classroom. A spokesperson for the state education department, Dan Isett, said the mandate is not optional and that the superintendent has 鈥渁 wide range of tools to deal with rogue districts鈥� that do not comply.
Under the mandate, Oklahoma schools must incorporate the Bible into lesson plans for all public school students in grades five through 12 in Oklahoma.
School districts also have been offered guidance from law firms that represent them and the state鈥檚 largest teachers union, the Oklahoma Education Association, that the superintendent doesn't have the unilateral authority to issue such a requirement and that the edict is unenforceable.
The decision by many Oklahoma school districts to disregard state Superintendent Ryan Walters' directive didn鈥檛 sit well with the first-term Republican, who chastised those districts at the start of a recent board meeting.
鈥淭hese are the districts that want pornography in front of kids under the name of inclusivity, but don鈥檛 want the historical context of the Bible,鈥� Walters said, referring to a failed effort by his education department to "The Kite Runner鈥� and 鈥淭he Glass Castle鈥� from library shelves because of sexual content.
鈥淚t鈥檚 outrageous. We will not allow it. Just because they don鈥檛 like it, just because they鈥檙e offended by it, just because they don鈥檛 want to do it doesn鈥檛 mean that they won鈥檛 do it. They will be held accountable.鈥�
The directive from Walters is the latest salvo in an effort by conservative-led states to target public schools: Louisiana has required them to post the , while others are under pressure to and and lessons about race, sexual orientation and gender identity. Earlier this summer the Oklahoma Supreme Court by the state to have the first publicly funded religious charter school in the country.
Walters, himself a former public school teacher who was elected to his post in 2022, ran on banning books from school libraries and getting rid of 鈥渞adical leftists鈥� who he claims are indoctrinating children in classrooms.
Among his Republican colleagues in the Legislature, patience with Walters appears to be wearing thin. State Rep. Mark McBride, a Republican from Moore who chairs the subcommittee that funds public schools, earlier this month sought an investigation into Walters over what McBride says are failures by the department to comply with legislative directives on funding and provide requested documents on expenditures. More than two dozen GOP House members signed on to McBride鈥檚 request, prompting Speaker of the House Charles McCall to request an independent investigation of the education department.
For his part, Walters dismissed the inquiry as a 鈥減olitical attack鈥� from House leaders and hinted toward the 2026 governor鈥檚 election, where both McCall and Walters have been mentioned as possible candidates for the seat being vacated by term-limited Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt.
Grant Sullivan, who owns Scott鈥檚 Hamburgers in downtown Bixby and delivers a sermon every Sunday at a small church in the nearby town of Morris, said he questions whether the Bible mandate is a good idea.
鈥淗ave we thought this through?鈥� asked Sullivan, who has a master鈥檚 degree in theology from Oklahoma Christian University and two children in Bixby schools. 鈥淲hat if you happen to have an atheistic teacher? Are they going to teach it in a way that may be more problematic than helpful?
鈥淚t just feels like that鈥檚 for the home and the church is how I feel about that.鈥�
Sean Murphy, The Associated Press
