He gives examples of federally funded programs, such as free and reduced lunches, English Language Proficiency programs and Title I, Part A, which provides funding for low-income schools.
In the request, Walters said he “fully supports … the efforts of [Trump’s] administration, both in the issues sought to be remedied by the EO, and generally.”
“Taxpayer dollars should be used to support the education of American students, not to subsidize or create a magnet for illegal immigration,” Walters said in an accompanying news release. “We must ensure compliance with the President’s executive order and take the necessary steps to uphold the rule of law in our schools.”
He asks Drummond to opine on two questions: Are federally funded Oklahoma public school programs affected by the order? And if so, how should the state department ensure the order's requirements?
The request could put Drummond — who has taken to social media to praise Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration — potentially at odds with the administration.
A spokesperson for the AG’s office said it has received the request and will respond “in due course.”
A landmark 1982 Supreme Court case, Plyler v. Doe, held that states could not deny enrollment in public schools to children who were not “legally admitted” into the U.S.
2023 guidance from the U.S. Department of Education reaffirmed that K-12 public schools “must be open to all students, including migratory children, regardless of their or their parents’ immigration status,” and “offer language assistance services to K-12 students who have limited English proficiency, including migratory children.”
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