Walters announces school choice resource, LGBT advocates rally at state board meeting

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (KOKH) — On Thursday, advocates for the LGBT community made their voices heard at the Oklahoma State Board of Education meeting.

Thursday's meeting was the first since the public gained access to the full medical examiner's report on the death of Owasso teenager Nex Benedict.

The tragic loss of the student, who identified as nonbinary, is still impacting many across the state.

Nicole Poindexter, who addressed the board and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters (R), asserted, "The policies of this board under your head sir have created targets... on already vulnerable children and uses them for pawns for your personal political gain."

In light of recently released information on Benedict, Walters expressed his condolences for the teen's family—and had his own response to activists and the media.

In his view, "They want to use the death of a child to support a political agenda. And I think it's absolutely disgusting."

Jacob Lavicky took issue with Walters' statements—and said that fellow members of the gender nonconforming community should have a place in Oklahoma.

The advocates who assembled at the Oklahoma State Department of Education on Thursday argued that bullying is a huge issue impacting LGBT-identifying students at school.

According to Lavicky, "You mentioned a woke mob. You mentioned [a] radical left-wing group. But I am not a woke mob, superintendent."

In other developments from Thursday, Walters shared that the department is rolling out an Office of School Choice.

He shared that Oklahoma will be one of the first states in the nation with the resource.

"We want to make sure that parents have one place to go where they can navigate what their options are with their child," he explained.

Additionally, three different schools trying to get off the ground had further action on their appeals for school sponsorship pushed back until late May.

The schools were P3 Urban Montessori. Proud to Partner Leadership Academy, and Willard C. Potts Academy.

The head of PTPLA asserted that roadblocks have been plaguing her process of getting approval for the school and faulted OSDE for not being more organized in resolving lingering questions.