OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s top school board has voted to ignore a judge’s finding that former Norman teacher Summer Boismier should keep her teaching license after posting a link in her classroom to an online library containing banned books.

The Oklahoma State Board of Education on Thursday unanimously voted to reject the judge’s recommendation and instead instructed its own attorney to put together a list of findings, signaling the board members could vote to revoke Boismier’s certification despite being advised against it.

Both Boismier and her attorney, Brady Henderson, denounced the state board’s actions.

“More than a year after Summer Boismier prevailed in her administrative hearing where her accuser failed to prove that she had broken any law, a group of political appointees chose to disregard that result and use their power to make a second attempt to revoke Boismier’s teaching certificate regardless of there being no legitimate factual or legal basis for doing so,” Henderson said.

The board’s attorney will present the report next month to highlight evidence and testimony “that reflect a decision to revoke the teaching certificate of Summer Boismier,” board member Katie Quebedeaux said while reading aloud the directive.

The Oklahoma State Department of Education has pursued revocation on the grounds that among the thousands of books in the catalog, some have sexual content. The teacher has said she never recommended any specific book in the collection.

Boismier said the decision sends “yet another chilling message to teachers, students and the entire state of Oklahoma.”

“The board’s action today means that this fight for free expression will soon move to the courts, where I am confident our rights will be restored and the board’s wrongs rectified,” she said.

After a June 2023 hearing, a judge found the state Department of Education failed to prove Boismier deserved to have her certification taken away, though the state board makes the final decision. Revocation is a penalty typically applied to teachers facing criminal charges, unlike Boismier.

But state Superintendent Ryan Walters said he views his administration’s case for revocation as “pretty open and shut.”

“We’ve heard from parents all over the state,” he said after the meeting. “They don’t want indoctrination in their schools. They want to make sure teachers are obeying the law.”

Walters accused Boismier of breaking state law and attempting to  “push inappropriate material.” However, the teacher and her former school district maintain she never violated the law nor faced any disciplinary action. She has not been charged with a criminal offense.

Boismier has been a target of Walters’ since she resigned from Norman High School in August 2022 in protest of a state law banning certain race and gender concepts from the classroom. The law prompted Norman Public Schools to have teachers remove books from their classrooms until each title could be reviewed.

Boismier made national news at the time when, rather than taking down her books, she covered her shelves with red paper that read, “Books the state doesn’t want you to read.” She also placed QR code links to the Books Unbanned program at the Brooklyn Public Library, which gives teenagers access to its catalog nationwide.

Walters, who at the time was a political candidate running for state superintendent, called for her certification to be revoked because “there is no place for a teacher with a liberal political agenda in the classroom.”

Since her resignation, Boismier moved to New York to work at the Brooklyn library.

She is suing Walters in Oklahoma City federal court, contending he personally owes her $75,000 or more for defamation, slander, libel and false representation.

More than a dozen other educators had their teaching licenses suspended or revoked on Thursday. Most of the affected teachers are facing criminal charges, ranging from first-degree murder to child abuse.

Board suspends Kingfisher coaches

Two of the cases stemmed from an alleged hazing scandal within the Kingfisher High School football program, which has made statewide headlines for more than two years.

The board suspended the license of former head coach Jeff Myers, who was charged in October with felony child neglect. It also accepted the surrendered teaching license of Micah Nall, another former Kingfisher coach facing felony charges of child abuse and perjury.

Myers is accused of ignoring boxing and wrestling matches that took place in his locker room — incidents a former player said were abusive. The former player, Mason Mecklenburg, sued in 2022 and won a $5 million settlement from Kingfisher Public Schools.

Mecklenburg’s father, Justin Mecklenburg, thanked the board for doing what the Kingfisher district and the former Education Department administration had not by suspending Myers’ certification.

“As a parent, you expect that your child will be safe from harm under the supervision of adult teachers and coaches,” Mecklenburg said. “Our son, Mason, along with many other student athletes, endured years of hazing, physical and verbal abuse, and instances of sexual assault under the supervision of Coach Myers. We are hopeful that today’s action will prevent future students from enduring the pain and torture our son experienced.”

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – Activities are in preparation for military service members and their families as the Oklahoma City Museum of Art (OKCMOA) in collaboration with the United Service Organizations (USO) kick off Military Appreciation Day on Friday, July 12.

This inaugural event is anticipated to provide a day where service members and their families can experience all the Museum has to offer free of charge.

“We’re very excited to collaborate with the USO on this endeavor,” said OKCMOA President and CEO Michael Anderson, PhD. “Our military service members and their families are an important part of our community, and it’s an honor to share the Museum with them in this way.”

The scheduled programming will be as follows:

Painting Classes 

10:30 am-12 pm and 2-3:30 pm | Exclusive to military service members and their adult guests 

Participate in a painting class led by an OKCMOA teaching artist. Limited to 20 registrants per session. Questions? Email usooklahoma@uso.org 

Card-Making Station 

11 am-4 pm | Open to the public 

As part of our commitment to fostering a sense of community, visitors to the Museum will have the meaningful opportunity to create “thank you for your service” cards. These heartfelt messages will be sent to our brave service members who are deployed overseas, allowing our visitors to directly contribute to their well-being and show their support.  

Drop-In Gallery Tours 

11 am, 1 pm, 2 pm, and 3 pm | Exclusive to military service members and their families 

Participate in a guided tour of OKCMOA’s world-famous Chihuly glass collection. Offered at the top of the hour at 11 am, 1 pm, 2 pm, and 3 pm. No registration required.  

Oath of Service Ceremony 

12 pm | Open to the public 

In coordination with the USO, Military Entrance Processing Stations (MEPS), and Recruiting Command, OKCMOA will host an Oath of Service ceremony in front of the Museum at Carolyn Hill Park. Immediately following the ceremony, new recruits and their families will be invited to stay for an informal lunch in the Museum.  

Military Kids Art Exhibition  

On View July 12-14 | Open to the public 

OKCMOA invites all participants in the annual USO Craft Camp to visit the Museum to see their art on display. OKCMOA is pleased to host a punch and cookies reception for the artists and their families. (Reception time to be announced.) 

For more information, please visit okcmoa.com or contact OKCMOA’s Head of Education Bryon Chambers at bchambers@okcmoa.com. 

Rojem was convicted in 1985 of kidnapping, raping and murdering his former stepdaughter, 7-year-old Layla Cummings. His execution Thursday follows that of Ramiro Gonzales in Texas on Wednesday

Richard Rojem Jr. is set to be executed by lethal injection in Oklahoma on Thursday for the rape and murder of his 7-year-old former stepdaughter. If it goes forward, the execution will be the nation’s second in as many days.

Rojem, 66, was convicted in 1985 of raping and stabbing 7-year-old Layla Dawn Cummings to death. Her brutalized body was left in a field and found by a farmer; she was still wearing her mom’s nightgown.

“Everything she might have been was stolen from her one horrific night,” Layla’s mother, Mindy Cummings, told the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board this month. “She never got to be more than the precious 7-year-old that she was. And so she remains in our hearts − forever 7.”

Rojem has always maintained his innocence, telling the board on June 17: “I did not kidnap Layla. I did not rape Layla. And I did not murder Layla.”

The board rejected his clemency request. His execution will be the state’s second of the year and the nation’s ninth.

Here’s what we know ahead of the execution.

What is Richard Rojem convicted of?

Layla was abducted from an apartment in Elk City, Oklahoma, where she lived with her mother and 9-year-old brother, on July 6, 1984, Oklahoma state court documents say. The children’s mother and Rojem’s ex-wife, Mindy Cummings, had left them alone to work a late shift at a local fast-food restaurant.

The child’s body was found the next morning in a field 15 miles from her home by a farm in Burns Flat. the appellate court records say.

Rojem and Mindy Cummings had only been divorced for two months before Layla’s murder. The two met while Rojem was serving time in a Michigan prison for the rape of two teenage girls; Cummings was the sister of Rojem’s cellmate, according to court records.

The then-26-year-old Rojem knew Cummings’ work schedule and that the lock to her apartment door was broken, according to the court filings.

Rojem was found guilty on May 31, 1985 and sentenced to death.

Has Richard Rojem appealed?

Rojem appealed his death sentence multiple times until he exhausted his attempts in 2017, Oklahoma court records show. He did win two appeals as his initial and second death sentences were thrown out in 2001 and 2006 due to problems with the jury in both instances.

A jury sentenced him to death again in 2007, and he did not win anymore appeals afterward.

Rojem’s final attempt to remain on death row for the rest of his life was on June 17 during a clemency hearing. During the hearing, Rojem maintained that he did not murder Layla and he apologized for his past, which included the rape of two teenage girls.

“I wasn’t a good human being for the first part of my life, and I don’t deny that,” a handcuffed Rojem said during the hearing. “But I went to prison. I learned my lesson and I left all that behind.”

The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board denied Rojem clemency.

When will Richard Rojem be executed?

Rojem is scheduled to be executed at 10 a.m. CT at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester, 90 miles south of Tulsa.

Oklahoma executions are scheduled 90 days apart due to the “emotional and mental trauma on correctional staff,” Attorney General Gentner Drummond said in a May news release. The execution interval was previously 60 days, he added.

How will Richard Rojem be executed?

Rojem will be executed with a three-drug lethal injection containing midazolam, vecuronium bromide and potassium chloride, according to Oklahoma execution protocols.

Midazolam is a sedative that is normally administered to help patients feel relaxed before surgery, vecuronium bromide is peripherally used as part of general anesthesia and potassium chloride is a medication for low blood potassium. The combination of the drugs the prison is using is fatal.

Who will witness the execution?

The Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office told USA TODAY that the “witness list is confidential for security reasons.”

While unclear who will be in the execution room, the Oklahoma State Penitentiary at McAlester does provide a place to view for people 18 or older who are immediate family of any deceased victim of the defendant, according to state statutes.

Rojem’s attorney, Jack Fisher, told USA TODAY that he would be attending his client’s execution on Thursday.

Among the select members of the news media who will witness the execution is reporter Nolan Clay of The Oklahoman, part of the USA TODAY Network.

What will be Richard Rojem’s final meal?

According to the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, Rojem’s final meal will consist of:

• A small Little Caeser’s pizza – double cheese/double pepperoni
• Eight salt packets
• Eight crushed red pepper packets.
• Vernors Ginger Ale, bottled.
• Four ounces of vanilla ice cream cups