Andrea Eger
Tulsa World Projects Reporter
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Oklahoma’s next state superintendent will soon be decided by the governor, not voters, but its current one isn’t giving up the reins of the Oklahoma State Department of Education just yet.
Word of Walters’ impending resignation began to circulate Wednesday morning, and then he took to social media just after 2 p.m. and claimed that he was “Going on Fox News now with Martha MacCallum! Tune in!” But that TV appearance Walters promised never materialized during the 2 p.m. daily cable news program.
At 7:15 p.m., Walters was at it again. He tweeted: “Big news tonight on Fox News with Trace Gallagher. Liberal’s worst nightmare is about to become true. Tune in.”
At 10:45 p.m., when that late-night cable program called Fox News @ Night was nearly over, Walters was introduced as having “big news” to share from Oklahoma and then received less than two minutes of airtime.
“I am excited to announce I will be stepping down as Oklahoma State Superintendent and taking on the role as the CEO of the Teacher Freedom Alliance,” Walters said. “We’re going to destroy the teachers unions. We have seen the teachers unions use money and power to corrupt our schools, to undermine our schools. We are one of the biggest grassroots orgs in the country. We will build an army of teachers to defeat the teachers unions once and for all.”
Walters was sworn into office in January 2023, and his early departure is expected to leave one-third of his term remaining.
The decision about who will serve out those 16 months is in the same hands that first gave Walters any power in state government — Gov. Kevin Stitt.
It was Stitt after all, who named Walters to his Cabinet in September 2020 and Stitt who campaigned for Walters’ successful bid for state superintendent.
But as of Thursday, all anyone in charge said they knew came from Walters’ Wednesday night television appearance, not from any formal resignation notice that is needed to trigger a gubernatorial appointment to fill a vacant state office.
Stitt’s office released a press statement just before noon Thursday, wishing Walters and his family well in the future.
“Oklahoma students remain my top priority, and with my first appointment to this role, I will be seeking a leader who is fully focused on the job Oklahomans expect: delivering real outcomes and driving a turnaround in our education system,” Stitt said.
Stitt publicly split with Walters in the spring and overhauled the majority of the membership of the State Board of Education with individuals who have repeatedly clashed with Walters.
“I believe that the superintendent’s resignation opens the door for us now to make progress as a board and to what’s best for the children of this state,” said one of those recent board appointees, Becky Carson of Edmond.
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Board member Michael Tinney of Norman declined when asked to name whom he would like to see appointed as Walters’ successor. But he said he has confidence in the governor to appoint someone “ethical and honest.”
As for the state’s lightning rod soon-to-be former state superintendent, Walters has also left the powers that be wondering whether he is still considering a gubernatorial run in 2026.
His new gig appears to be a rather tall order — leading a fledgling offshoot of the Freedom Foundation, which has posted on its website that it currently counts fewer than 3,000 teacher members nationwide, despite no-cost membership.
A press release states that he will assume his new private-sector role Oct. 1, which is less than a week away.
That release includes a written statement from Walters that says: “At the Teacher Freedom Alliance, we’re giving educators real freedom, freedom from the liberal, woke agenda that has corrupted public education. We will arm teachers with the tools, support, and freedom they need, without forcing them to give up their values. This is a battle for the future of our kids, and we will not lose.”
Established in 1991, the Freedom Foundation has described itself as conservative and libertarian in its mission to reduce government. It employs the use of litigation, public messaging campaigns and direct outreach to public sector employees to encourage resistance to union membership and dues.
In the spring of this year, the foundation announced its launch of the Teacher Freedom Alliance to offer professional support services and liability coverage, as well as professional development opportunities and resources in “historically accurate curricula” for “pro-America educators.” It is sold as an alternative to traditional labor union membership, or in the words of Freedom Foundation CEO Aaron Withe, “free from political influence and union control.”
Withe hailed the selection of Walters as the Teacher Freedom Alliance’s first CEO.
“Ryan is a proven freedom fighter who understands that America cannot restore its education system without breaking free from the grip of teachers’ unions,” he was quoted as saying in the alliance’s Thursday morning press release.
Since his campaign for statewide office in 2022, Walters, a former public high school teacher from McAlester, has railed against teachers unions, even calling them “terrorist organizations.”
At least three times while in office, Walters has used state resources to promote the Freedom Foundation’s efforts.
• In 2023, Walters traveled to Denver to appear as keynote speaker at the Freedom Foundation’s teachers inaugural Freedom Summit.
• In 2024, Walters’ administration introduced like-minded political and advocacy groups and embedded representatives of those groups as instructors at the Oklahoma State Department of Education’s annual summer professional development conference for teachers, including the anti-labor union Freedom Foundation.
• The same week that nonprofit announced its launch of the Teacher Freedom Alliance in March, Walters used the official communications platforms of the State Department of Education to tout educator membership in the Teacher Freedom Alliance as a “necessary free market solution.”
andrea.eger@tulsaworld.com
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Andrea Eger
Tulsa World Projects Reporter
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