Most often, districts accused of getting these books mentioned the titles weren’t accessible of their faculties. 

In a Monday letter to state lawmakers, Walters additionally highlighted greater than 100 further books that he mentioned do not belong in faculties. Most of the books heart on LGBTQ points.

He alleges that “Flamer,” a semi-autobiographical novel a couple of younger boy struggling along with his identification, was present in Tulsa, Owasso and Bixby public faculties.

Owasso Public Faculties spokesman Jordan Korphage mentioned one copy of the e book is obtainable on the district’s highschool after the title went via a assessment course of earlier this 12 months. The assessment was an “in depth” self-audit of about 6,300 titles on college library cabinets, Korphage mentioned. 

Representatives for the Tulsa and Bixby districts mentioned they do not have copies of the e book. 

Walters additionally took problem with “Gender Queer: A Memoir,” which he mentioned was discovered inside TPS. A district spokeswoman mentioned Tulsa faculties do not have the e book.

“There are actually zero adults in our faculties arguing in opposition to college students getting access to age-appropriate books,” TPS spokeswoman Emma Garrett Nelson mentioned. “It is a debate Ryan Walters is having with himself.” 

This is not the primary time Walters has criticized TPS, alleging that its faculties have inappropriate books. 

Monday’s letter included graphic pictures from the books in query. Walters additionally says the books “Garden Boy” and “Let’s Speak About It: The Teen’s Information to Intercourse, Relationships, and Being a Human” have been present in faculties, though he does not specify by which districts.

“At this time, with the assistance of the state legislature, my workplace and the dad and mom of Oklahoma have put the far-left on discover,” Walters mentioned in a information launch. “Oklahoma will not be a breeding floor for liberal indoctrination. I’m happy to work with the Home, Senate and Governor’s workplace to take away and forestall dangerous ideologies from getting into our school rooms.”

The State Board of Training lately authorised company guidelines that will enable the governing physique to downgrade the accreditation standing of faculties discovered to have library supplies deemed pornographic or excessively sexualized. 

When reached Monday afternoon, officers with Bixby Public Faculties mentioned “Flamer” was voluntarily pulled from the district’s cabinets a 12 months in the past by a library media specialist.

Along with having insurance policies outlining the best way to problem a e book’s inclusion within the district’s library assortment, Superintendent Rob Miller mentioned, the district’s librarians have labeled a number of titles corresponding to “The Bluest Eye” as mature, requiring a pupil to both be at the very least 18 or enrolled in an Superior Placement course with a view to examine them out.

Together with an ongoing inner assessment of titles that may very well be thought of controversial or inappropriate for sure ages, Bixby Public Faculties applied an choice final 12 months to permit dad and mom full management over what titles their little one might try from a faculty library. Nonetheless, up to now, no dad and mom have utilized that choice, Miller mentioned.

“To proceed to beat the drum that we’re not doing something is solely incorrect and unfair,” Miller mentioned, noting that his district has not acquired any direct communication from the Oklahoma State Division of Training about e book considerations. “Our media specialists have been tasked with and are embracing the duty to do that.”

Within the letter, Walters lists 4 further books — “Bye Bye, Binary,” “Téo’s Tutu,” “Miss Rita, Thriller Reader” and “Completely different Sorts of Fruit.” He cites these books as “questionable” and says they don’t have any place in faculties. It isn’t clear whether or not any of those titles might be present in Oklahoma public faculties. 

Walters additionally referenced all 190 titles on this 12 months’s Rainbow E book Listing, which is a group of numerous tales in regards to the LGBTQ youth expertise. The listing, compiled by a bunch affiliated with the American Library Affiliation, contains books for preschoolers and younger adults and children of all ages in between.

Walters is in search of additional assessment of those books, mentioned State Division of Training spokesman Justin Holcomb. He doesn’t specify that any of those titles are in public faculties. 

Walters’ letter comes as Rep. Mark McBride, R-Moore, has requested that the newly elected state superintendent come earlier than the Home Appropriations and Finances Subcommittee on Training to reply lawmakers’ questions. McBride has mentioned he’d prefer to see proof of Walters’ claims that there are books containing “pornographic” supplies in faculties. 

Final week, Walters emailed all 149 state lawmakers specific supplies he mentioned he present in a number of college library books. 

McBride mentioned Monday that he nonetheless needs particulars on the place the obscene books have been discovered, what the State Division of Training did in response and the way the districts in query dealt with the matter. 

“(Walters) despatched out the pornographic materials final week, however (he) has but to have the title of a faculty that it was present in and what was the response of the varsity district,” McBride mentioned. “These are the issues that we’re wanting to listen to, not simply, ‘Would you need this in Oklahoma faculties?’ Nicely, heck no, we do not need that in Oklahoma faculties.”

Within the letter, Walters didn’t say whether or not he’ll seem earlier than state lawmakers to reply questions on his administration.