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Education Department staffers sue Walters, his advisor over firings
news
June 7, 2023
Education Department staffers sue Walters, his advisor over firings
By Jennifer Palmer Oklahoma Watch,

Two state Education Department employees who were fired last week have filed lawsuits against Superintendent Ryan Walters and Matt Langston, his chief policy advisor and former campaign manager.

On Thursday, Langston emailed employees of the agency, threatening any employee “found leaking information to the press” with immediate termination. Langston sent slightly different versions of the email in an apparent “canary trap”, an idea he got from Elon Musk, according to Langston’s Twitter posts.

Musk is CEO of Tesla and owns Twitter, both private companies. The state Education Department is public Both employees were subsequently fired. Cheryl Mc Gee, an executive director of s cho ol-bas ed mental health, says she was let go May 25 for sharing the “keep quiet” email with the press, according to her lawsuit.

Matthew Colwell, a program manager of school success, was fired for sending a memo to the state Attorney General and a state representative, sharing concerns that Walters’ proposed teacher bonus plan ran afoul of state and federal laws and could cost the state $18 million.

Both employees say their firings were unlawful and retaliatory and violated their right to free speech under the First Amendment, according to the lawsuits, filed Tuesday in federal court.

A spokesman for the department, Justin Holcomb, called their claims “a political stunt with no legal merit.”

Walters announced the teacher bonus plan on April 26 in Warner. According to the department, new and returning certified teachers can earn significant bonuses of up to $50,000 if they commit to teaching for five years.

The Department allocated $16 million in federal funds for the program: unused pandemic relief funds (from the American Rescue Plan) and special education dollars. Oklahoma Watch has been asking the Department for records that show they have authorization to use the funds in this way for weeks, but they have not been provided.

Walters is already touting the program as a success, saying it has received more than 500 applicants. As I continue reporting on the program, I’d love to hear from you. Did you or someone you know apply? Please reach out via email or direct message.

The annual 4th of July Fireworks show
A: Main, news
The annual 4th of July Fireworks show
July 9, 2025
Eufaula’s population was swollen over the weekend as thousands of out-of-towners joined locals to watch the annual 4th of July Fireworks show, held Friday, July 4. The display took place over the Eufa...
A: Main, news
City gets more attorneys; OKs growth plan
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
July 9, 2025
New-and-former City Manager Jacob Foos continues to make changes at city hall. Shortly after being re-hired for the position he left in September, 2021, Foos issued a statement that he was establishin...
Local resident stars in U.S. Cellular ad
A: Main, news
Local resident stars in U.S. Cellular ad
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
July 9, 2025
In all of her 58 years Louana Christie, EHS Class of ’85, never thought she would appear before a camera. Movie making was for her older sister, Selina Jayne Dornan, former Eufaula mayor and who once ...
A: Main, news
Eufaula school feels the chill from Trump’s funding freeze
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
July 9, 2025
When the Trump administration announced this week it was freezing over $70 million in education funding earmarked for Oklahoma, it surprised a lot of administrators. Eufaula School Superintendent Mont...
A: Main, news
Trump freezes over $70 million in state’s education funds
July 9, 2025
States won’t receive funds from six federal programs, including after-school care and English learner support, until further notice. NURIA MARTINEZ-KEEL OKLAHOMA VOICE OKLAHOMA CITY — The Trump admini...
Noah Alexander trades football uniform for West Point uniform
A: Main, news
Noah Alexander trades football uniform for West Point uniform
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
July 9, 2025
Noah Alexander will begin his senior year at the United States Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., this fall. It seems like only yesterday he was a stand-out running back for the Eufaula Ironheads, ...
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Bud McCombs to speak to Friends of Library
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Bud McCombs to speak to Friends of Library
By LENORE BECHTEL 
July 9, 2025
How Eufaula happened to exist will be Friend’s speaker’s topic at the Eufaula Memorial Library at 1 p.m. Friday, July 18, When Eufaula was only an intersection, the city’s founding fathers lived in a ...
news
Annual Memorial Service planned at Honey Springs Battlefield
July 9, 2025
CHECOTAH — Honey Springs Battlefield will hold its annual memorial service on Saturday, July 19, at 10:30 a.m. to honor the 162nd anniversary of the Battle of Honey Springs near Checotah. The service ...
Calls needed to protect National Weather Service operations
commentary
Calls needed to protect National Weather Service operations
By JOE DORMAN OICA CEO 
July 9, 2025
OKLAHOMA CITY – We at the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) extend our deepest condolences to families tragically impacted by the recent flooding in Texas. Flooding along the Guadalupe Rive...
news
Jeff Starling launches campaign for attorney general
July 9, 2025
TULSA ––Jeff Starling, Oklahoma’s Secretary of Energy and Environment, has officially announced his candidacy for Attorney General of Oklahoma. Starling is a conservative, attorney, businessman, and d...
Warriors of God, ready yourselves
commentary
Warriors of God, ready yourselves
July 9, 2025
Of my 56 years of being in this world, 50 of those years I have been filled with the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. I was only six years old when I attended my first Tiger Mount...
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