Oklahoma joins states requiring schools to report DEI spending
Oklahoma State School Superintendent Ryan Walters called DEI-related programs 'Marxist' to the core.
Oklahoma Schools will now be required to list the names of all staff members who spend more than 25% of their work time in DEI programs.
On Apr. 27, the Oklahoma State Board of Education unanimously voted to require all public school districts to submit spending reports of all Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion initiatives for this school year.
The state’s districts have the preliminary deadline to submit DEI spending reports of June 9. The final deadline is Sept. 1.
Ryan Walters, Oklahoma State School Superintendent, stated that DEI is “Marxist at its core.” He also said that “It would be more accurate to call them [DEI initiatives] divide, exclude and indoctrinate.”
[RELATED: PROF. GIORDANO: Divert DEI Funding to Make a Real Impact]
Schools will now be required to list the names of all staff members who spend more than 25% of their work time in DEI programs. The requirements also extend to any third party vendor that provides “DEI services.”
In late February, the word “diverse,” in addition to any other equity and bias-related references, was also cut from the state’s computer science classes.
Public school districts have become the Oklahoma State Board of Education’s new focus.
Previously, Superintendent Walters required all universities within the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education to report every dollar spent on DEI initiatives in the last ten years. Higher education institutions in Oklahoma are expected to spend over $10.2 million on DEI initiatives during this academic year, according to The Oklahoman.
The new requirement has placed Oklahoma in the ranks of many other states severing ties with DEI-related programs and initiatives. Campus Reform has covered many such instances.
Several of these states include South Carolina, Iowa, Mississippi, Texas, and Florida.
[RELATED: University drops DEI statements, rubric from hiring process]
A recent analysis by Campus Reform revealed that technical education has become a new focus in academia as traditional four-year education continues to lose its value.
The analysis found that DEI policies have contributed to incoming students now questioning the values of a college degree.
contacted every university, organization, and individual mentioned. This article will be updated accordingly.
