Two years after promising to ban a former Norman High School educator from ever teaching in Oklahoma again, state Superintendent Ryan Walters said that teacher’s certification is now revoked.
The teacher, Summer Boismier, drew national attention in August 2022 for posting a QR code in her classroom that linked to a library catalog containing banned books.
The Oklahoma State Board of Education voted on Thursday to approve a new order in the state’s revocation case against Boismier. Walters said the new order, which he hasn’t publicly released, formally revoked her teaching certificate.
Walters claimed Boismier violated House Bill 1775, which bans the teaching of certain race and gender-related concepts, and said she is too liberal to teach in Oklahoma.
“She broke the law, you know,” Walters said after the state board meeting. “And I said from the beginning, when you have a teacher that breaks the law, says she broke the law, says she’ll continue to break the law, that can’t stand.”
Boismier and Norman Public Schools have maintained that she broke no state laws. She resigned in August 2022 and faced no disciplinary action from her former school district.
A judge presiding over a revocation hearing in June 2023 found that the Oklahoma State Department of Education failed to prove that Boismier deserved to have her license revoked. The state Board of Education voted to reject that judge’s findings at its meeting this June.
Brady Henderson, attorney for Boismier, said he hasn’t seen an order from the Board of Education yet.
“Hopefully we will soon so we can finally go to court and get the board action overturned,” he said.
Boismier has sued Walters in Oklahoma City federal court, alleging slander, libel, defamation and false representation. She is seeking $75,000 or more in payment from Walters himself.
She is no longer working or living in Oklahoma. Boismier has moved to New York City and works at the Brooklyn Public Library, which curated the online collection of banned books.
Writing on social media Monday, Boismier said she does not regret her actions, only that she didn’t do it sooner. Boismier said sharing access to the library catalog was a stand against “soft censorship and state-sanctioned bigotry.”
🧵1/6: Two years ago I did the most brat thing I could & stood against soft censorship & state-sanctioned bigotry in the least demure way possible. I had substantial privilege in doing what I did. And as l've said before, my only regret is I didn't do it sooner. I stand by that. pic.twitter.com/onVdcBfewI
— Ms. Boismier, M.Ed. (@MsBoismier_ELA) August 20, 2024
Walters has accused Boismier of attempting to indoctrinate students and claimed she shared access to pornographic material because some of the books in the library collection have sexual content.
At the same meeting, the state Board of Education advanced proceedings against 19 other teaching certificates.
Many of those teachers, like in most revocation cases, have been accused of serious crimes, ranging from child abuse and exploitation to assault and possession of child pornography. Boismier and at least two other teachers on the list have not been charged with any criminal offenses.
Ardmore teacher Alison Scott and Edmond teacher Regan Killackey are facing revocation proceedings over social media posts disparaging former President Donald Trump, whom Walters has endorsed for reelection. The board referred Scott and Killackey’s cases to a revocation hearing before a judge.
“You guys saw a list of folks today for different reasons, you know, they had their licenses pulled or suspended,” Walters said. “And what we want to hear, what we want the people of Oklahoma to be very clear about is we’re going to continue to hold folks accountable.”
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