Just two days after Donald Trump's re-election, Oklahoma state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters issued a memo highlighting his priorities under the new administration, backing Trump's plan to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education.
Walters pledged to direct state resources to end "social indoctrination in classrooms" and limit the impact of "illegal immigration" on schools, according to the memo obtained by The Oklahoman.
Walters, a vocal Trump supporter, expressed commitment to "restoring authority to states" by pushing for federal education funds to be redirected as block grants.
"For decades, the U.S. Department of Education has unjustifiably expanded federal power over American education," Walters said in the memo, pledging to work closely with Trump to eliminate federal "overreach" in education.
"By eliminating the federal bureaucracy, money can be efficiently directed to local schools and allow disenfranchised parents to have more direct say over education in their states and communities." Walters said.
The memo drew bipartisan criticism. State Rep. Jacob Rosecrants, D-Norman, described the memo as "yet another example of how inept and power hungry" Walters is.
"Not only can he not do the things he proposes, he is obviously doing all of this to catch the eye of the incoming president," Rosecrants told The Oklahoman. "None of this will help our schools move up from the bottom, which is where he's left our schools, in the almost two years he's been elected to lead our schools."
State Rep. Mark McBride, R-Moore, dismissed the announcement as a publicity move.
"I find it amusing, that not even 48 hours after Trump's election, Walters is already talking about what the Trump administration is going to do," McBride told The Oklahoman. "Personally, I will wait until the adults in the room – that is, President Trump and his team – decide before I get excited."
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