Education, Culture & the Family

Ardmore teacher wishes Trump dead?

July 16, 2024

Ray Carter

An Ardmore teacher appears to have wished for the death of former President Donald Trump in a social-media post highlighted on a prominent account on X (formerly Twitter).

The Libs of TikTok account, operated by Chaya Raichik, posted a screenshot of an apparent Facebook exchange in which Alison Scott, an educator in the Ardmore school district, appears to lament that Trump’s assassin failed to kill the former president.

“Meet Alison Scott, a teacher at @Ardmore_Tigers. She appears sad the sh**ter missed and ‘wishes’ he had a better scope,” Raichik posted. “These are the people educating your kids.”

The tweet included a screenshot of a social-media exchange, apparently from Facebook. In the screenshot, one individual offers $500 to Trump’s attempted assassin “for trying to save us …” A posted response, attributed to Scott, states, “Same!!! Wish they had a better scope.”

Scott teaches music history and music theory to high school students in Ardmore.

In a 2022 profile on the Ardmore Athletics website, Scott said she enjoys “making a positive impact on children’s lives and inspiring them to do better.”

On her Facebook page, Scott has a graphic declaring, “I am a public school advocate and I strongly oppose Ryan Walters for State Superintendent.” She also has posts related to LGBT events and organizations and a “Black Lives Matter” graphic.

In 2020, Scott posted a photo of state Rep. Mauree Turner, D-Oklahoma City, who was the first elected legislator in the country who identified as “nonbinary.” The Facebook graphic calls Turner a “Face of change” and notes that Turner, then a candidate, “would be the first Muslim to serve in Oklahoma’s state legislature.” Scott’s accompanying post declares the occasion to be a “proud teacher moment.”

The Ardmore school district website does not appear to have contact information for Scott.

A copy of the Ardmore district’s master contract for teachers, posted on the school district website, includes provisions related to social-media activity. Among other things, the contract states, “The Superintendent and the School Principals will annually remind staff members and orient new staff members concerning the importance of maintaining proper decorum in the on-line, digital world as well as in person.”

The Ardmore school district released a statement saying, “Ardmore City Schools is aware that a district employee made a statement on a social media platform appearing to condone violence against a political figure. The district has begun a thorough and swift investigation into the matter. At this time, the district cannot comment on what actions, if any, it will take as this is an ongoing personnel matter. Ardmore City Schools strongly condemns acts of physical violence and any words that seek to encourage it, no matter their target. It is the goal of the Board of Education, together with the district’s faculty and staff, to educate students in a safe environment free from violent acts and rhetoric.”

In a post on X, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters said the Oklahoma State Department of Education is also investigating the incident.

Although she is not an Oklahoman, Raichik was appointed to the state’s Library Media Advisory Committee by Walters.

Raichik’s social-media accounts consist largely of reposting material put in the public domain by various left-wing individuals. She has particularly focused on teachers’ posts and has previously highlighted comments from at least one other Oklahoma educator.

In 2022, Raichik reposted a TikTok video created by then-Owasso teacher Tyler Wrynn in which Wrynn declared, “If your parents don’t accept you for who you are, f--k them. I’m your parents now.” Wrynn resigned from the Owasso district.

[NOTE: This story has been updated since publication to include statements from Ardmore Public Schools and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters.]

Photo Credit: Associated Press