Updated October 15, 2025 at 3:12 PM CDT
Oklahoma's new State Superintendent of Public Instruction is ending his predecessor's plan to distribute Bibles to every classroom.
Ryan Walters' controversial plan to put a Bible in every classroom last summer almost immediately met pushback. About a year ago, a coalition of parents, teachers and faith leaders filed a lawsuit against him and the state over the mandate.
The suit is ongoing, but because of Walters' exit, Oklahoma's State Supreme Court gave his replacement Lindel Fields, the opportunity to withdraw or resolve the case in the next two weeks.
But he ultimately took much less time. On Wednesday, Fields announced he would withdraw the mandate at the heart of the case.
"We plan to file a motion to dismiss, and have no plans to distribute Bibles or a Biblical character education curriculum in classrooms," he said in a statement. "If resources are left to be allocated, the timing is fortunate since the team and I are currently reviewing the budget."
The Bible plan was slated to cost at least $3 million and appeared to be narrowly tailored to those endorsed by former President Donald Trump.
As for 500 Trump Bibles already purchased, right now state officials will "just let it be," said Tara Thompson, a spokesperson for the Oklahoma State Department of Education.
Thompson said at a later date the department may "issue guidance to schools on what to do with those."
There are currently several pending lawsuits against Walters. Thompson said the department is reviewing them and will address them as quickly as possible. They're also examining several policy statements made by Walters to require action in schools.
"We need to review all of those mandates and provide clarity to schools moving forward," she said.
For his part, the now private citizen Walters panned the decision by Fields to withdraw from the legal fight to put more Bibles in classrooms.
"I could not be more disappointed in the decision to move away from empowering out teachers in Oklahoma to use a foundational document like the Bible in the classroom," Walters wrote on social media.
Bibles are readily and freely available in school libraries, classrooms and online.
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