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Republicans Split on St. Isidore

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oklahomawatch.org – Em Luetkemeyer – 2025-04-24 06:00:00

Republicans Split on St. Isidore

A coming Supreme Court case has divided some powerful Republicans into three camps: those who want to reinforce the wall between church and state, those who want to tear it down and those who would rather avoid taking any side at all.

The case, Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board v. Drummond, is scheduled for a hearing on April 30. Depending on the ultimate decision, it could establish the nation’s first publicly funded religious charter school by allowing the St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School to contract with the state of Oklahoma. Last year, the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled that the school violated the Constitution’s Establishment Clause, as well as Oklahoma law, which requires charter schools to be nonsectarian.

Those supporting the school have argued in briefs submitted to the court that it would not be a state actor and denying it a contract with the state is religious discrimination. Opponents argue the school would open the door to the government endorsing one religion over others or funding indoctrination in the classroom.

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who is now also running for governor, is one of those opponents. He sued the charter school board in 2023 over its contract with the school.

“This unconstitutional scheme to create the nation’s first state-sponsored religious charter school will open the floodgates and force taxpayers to fund all manner of religious indoctrination, including radical Islam or even the Church of Satan,” Drummond said of St. Isidore.

Rep. Kevin Hern of Oklahoma said in February that he thinks Drummond is looking at the case purely from a law standpoint and has cast his personal opinion aside.

“He has a responsibility to the state, and I think he sees his role as a state’s attorney general to push back on this,” Hern said.

On the other end is Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt and the superintendent of Oklahoma schools, Ryan Walters, who has taken many opportunities to curry favor with the MAGA base as he looks toward his own political future. Walters wrote an amicus brief in support of the school and told NOTUS the state is “leading the fight to tear down the left’s wall between church and state — and we won’t apologize for it.”

“This case is about one thing: the right of families to choose a faith-based education without government interference,” Walters said in a written statement. “We are working closely with allies across the country to build the legal and political strategy to win. Leftist radicals have joined forces with some moderate Republicans to support state backed atheism. Oklahoma is setting the standard, and we’re proud to be out front in this fight.”

Oklahoma pollster Pat McFerron found in data he collected in 2023 that the state’s Republican voters were split on the issue of religious charter schools. Because voters are divided, McFerron said he expects that most successful political figures will try to stay away from weighing in on the case.

“Drummond obviously has a passion for it, and so do Stitt and Ryan Walters on the other side, and so I think others are generally trying to stay out of it,” McFerron said.

State-level lawmakers have largely been absent from the list of amicus briefs.

“Typically, when Oklahoma has a case, or there’s a case that’s impacting Oklahoma, we see a number of state lawmakers run to file amicus on this one way or the other, and I’m not seeing that,” Tyler Powell, an Oklahoma-based political adviser, said.

Powell pointed to the 2018 election cycle as a reason for this, which was on the tail of a nine-day teacher walkout at the state Capitol, and many state-level lawmakers ran on pro-public education platforms. About half of the school districts in the state closed during the strike.

A group of conservative senators have weighed in at the national level. Sens. James Lankford of Oklahoma, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, Ted Budd of North Carolina and Ted Cruz of Texas also submitted an amicus brief in March supporting the school.

“The Oklahoma Charter Schools Act, by excluding religious organizations from participation, not only violates the First Amendment but also undermines the significant contributions that religious organizations make to public projects more generally,” they wrote. “This exclusion is not only legally indefensible but also practically detrimental to the common good and social fabric of America.”

President Donald Trump’s administration has leaned into school choice and established the White House Faith Office to root out perceived bias against Christians within the federal government.

Asked about the St. Isidore case, White House assistant press secretary Taylor Rogers pivoted to what Trump has already done. Trump, she said in a statement, has delivered “on his promise to dismantle the Department of Education and redirect power to the states and parents, giving America’s children the education they deserve.”

This article first appeared on Oklahoma Watch and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The post Republicans Split on St. Isidore appeared first on oklahomawatch.org

Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.



Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Center-Right

The content presents a balanced view of a legal case regarding the potential establishment of a religious charter school in Oklahoma, noting the division among Republicans on the issue. While it quotes various officials, including Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who opposes the charter school due to concerns about religious discrimination, it also emphasizes the perspectives of supporters, including Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt, who advocate for religious education without government interference. The language used, such as "left’s wall between church and state" and the framing of opponents as "leftist radicals," indicates a tendency to critique left-leaning views, aligning more closely with center-right positions that seek to broaden educational options through religious institutions. Overall, the article reflects the complexities within Republican perspectives while leaning towards the pro-religious education stance typical of center-right discourse.

News from the South - Oklahoma News Feed

Family sues Roblox, accusing them of failing to protect kids from predators

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www.youtube.com – KFOR Oklahoma’s News 4 – 2025-09-02 23:17:25

SUMMARY: An Oklahoma family is suing Roblox, accusing the popular gaming platform of failing to protect children from predators. The suit centers on a 12-year-old girl allegedly groomed and sexually extorted by a man posing as a 15-year-old boy. According to court documents, the predator coerced the girl into sending explicit photos, threatened to kill her family, and manipulated her using Roblox’s digital currency. The family claims Roblox is a “hunting ground for child predators” and profits from these dangers. Roblox states it has safeguards and recently announced plans to better detect risks. The lawsuit does not specify damages sought.

Family sues Roblox, accusing them of failing to protect kids from predators

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News from the South - Oklahoma News Feed

Thousands of State Employees Still Working Remotely

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oklahomawatch.org – Paul Monies – 2025-09-02 06:00:00


Over 8,500 Oklahoma state employees work remotely at least part-time, mainly due to limited office space. Following Gov. Kevin Stitt’s December executive order mandating a return to the office, agencies show varied telework rates. The Oklahoma Corporation Commission’s remote work rose from 12% to 59% amid office renovations, while the Department of Environmental Quality reduced remote work from 30% to 1%, complying fully with the order. The Department of Human Services still has over 80% teleworking due to space shortages. Exceptions to the return-to-office policy include off-hours workers, field employees, and those needing additional office space. About 30% of state employees telework overall.

More than 8,500 state employees are working remotely at least some of the time, with the arrangement mostly from a lack of space at agencies. 

The Office of Management and Enterprise Services compiled the latest numbers after a December executive order issued by Gov. Kevin Stitt mandating a return to the office for state employees. 

The Oklahoma Corporation Commission and the Department of Environmental Quality went in opposite directions on remote work in the second quarter report. Just 12% of employees at the Corporation Commission were on remote work in the first quarter. That jumped to 59% in the second quarter. The agency has relocated as its longtime office, the Jim Thorpe Building, undergoes renovations. 

Brandy Wreath, director of administration for the Corporation Commission, said the agency has a handful of experienced employees in its public utility division who work out of state and were hired on a telework basis. Some other employees are working remotely because of doctor’s orders limiting their interactions. The agency got rid of space and offices in the Jim Thorpe Building before the renovations started. The building project is expected to be completed in the next six months. 

“At Jim Thorpe, we were right-sized for everyone to be in the office,” Wreath said. “Whenever we moved to Will Rogers, we are in temporary space, and we don’t have enough space for everyone to be in every day.” 

Wreath said the Corporation Commission uses the state’s Workday system that has codes for employees to use when they are logged in and working remotely. Employees also know they are subject to random activity audits. 

“We’re supportive of the idea of having employees in the workplace and willing to serve,” Wreath said. “We also realize the value of having employees in rural Oklahoma and still being a part of the state structure. Our goal is to make sure our employees are productive, no matter where they are working. We are supportive of return-to-office, and we are utilizing the tools OMES has given us to ensure the state is getting its money’s worth.” 

The Department of Environmental Quality now has just 1% of its employees working remotely. That’s down from 30% in the first quarter. Spokeswoman Erin Hatfield said the agency, with 527 employees, is in full compliance with the executive order. Seven employees are on telework, with all but one on temporary telework status as they recover from medical issues.  

There are three exceptions to the return-to-office policy: employees whose hours are outside normal business hours; employees who already work in the field; and when new or additional office space would have to be acquired at additional cost. 

The Department of Human Services continued to have more than 80% of its 6,060 employees on some type of telework, according to the second quarter report. The agency said those numbers stemmed mostly from a lack of available office space. DHS closed dozens of county offices or found other agency office space for its employees to use in the first years of the COVID-19 pandemic, when there was a huge shift to remote work.  

The latest telework report covers 29,250 of the state’s 31,797 employees. About 30% of employees were on some version of telework in the second quarter. Dozens of agencies did not submit quarterly reports to the Office of Management and Enterprise Services.

Paul Monies has been a reporter with Oklahoma Watch since 2017 and covers state agencies and public health. Contact him at (571) 319-3289 or pmonies@oklahomawatch.org. Follow him on Twitter @pmonies. 



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The post Thousands of State Employees Still Working Remotely appeared first on oklahomawatch.org

Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.



Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

This content provides a fact-based report on the remote work status of Oklahoma state employees following an executive order from Governor Kevin Stitt. It presents information from multiple state agencies with no apparent favor or criticism of the executive order or political figures involved. The tone is neutral and focuses on the practical reasons and outcomes of remote work policies, reflecting a balanced approach without clear ideological leanings.

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News from the South - Oklahoma News Feed

Test taker finds it's impossible to fail 'woke' teacher assessment

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www.youtube.com – KFOR Oklahoma’s News 4 – 2025-09-02 04:17:31

SUMMARY: Oklahoma’s “America First” teacher qualification test aims to weed out “woke” educators from states like California and New York, focusing on civics, parental rights, and biology. However, many find it nearly impossible to fail. Test-takers, including independent publisher Ashley, report multiple attempts allowed per question, enabling passing regardless of knowing answers, often by guessing until correct. Average Oklahomans tested struggled with the questions, highlighting the test’s difficulty and questionable effectiveness. Critics say the test’s ease defeats its purpose of ensuring teacher knowledge. The state superintendent’s office was contacted for comment but had yet to respond.

Test taker finds it’s impossible to fail ‘woke’ teacher assessment

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