Shane Murnan, the principal of John Glenn Elementary School in the Western Heights School district of Oklahoma, has tendered his resignation following revelations of his past involvement in child pornography and his current activities as a drag queen performer.
Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters announced Murnan's resignation in a post on X, stating, "It's a great day for Oklahoma. It's a great day for Oklahoma Schools. Big win today, the Drag queen is out at Western Heights." Walters has been vocal about his disapproval of Murnan's presence in the school, insisting that such individuals should not be working with young children.
"I have demanded it from day 1," Walters continued. "This individual shouldn't be in a school. You should not be working with young kids. I have heard it from parents all over the state, all over this country, this is not what parents want for their kids."
The story of Murnan's past, who performs under the stage name Shantel Mandalay, was first broken by Libs of TikTok in August. The report revealed that Murnan had been previously charged with possession of pornographic images of children under 18 on his computer.
In a statement to Crisis in the Classroom (CITC), Walters said, "I demanded the school take action and fire a drag queen who not only engaged in the most inappropriate and sexually charged events imaginable, but he also used social media to recruit students." He added, "Our students will be protected from predatory behavior, and I have been crystal clear that I will not allow Oklahoma schools to become a training ground in drag queen propaganda."
Court records indicate that Murnan's child pornography charges were dismissed by a judge in February 2003. Following the revelation of this information by Libs of TikTok, Western Heights District Superintendent, Brayden Savage, acknowledged in a letter to parents that Murnan was hired despite knowledge of his previous charges.
"This evening, the Board of Education approved the hiring of Dr. Shane Murnan for the Head Principal position at John Glenn Elementary," the letter quoted a statement announcing his hiring in June. "Recently, the district has been made aware of previous charges that were dismissed more than 20 years ago. Dr. Murnan has been serving the field of education for more than 25 years and has an outstanding reputation. He comes highly recommended by previous supervisors, colleagues, and educators."
However, the school's decision has been met with backlash from parents. Christina Madden, a parent, told Fox 25 that she planned to remove her children from the school if Murnan remained principal.
"I feel like, there, there was something there. You know, for that to even be brought up, whether it was 20 years ago, it's there," she said. "I feel like they should have reached out to the parents, yes, and they still haven't. Nobody has, you know, sent parents personal emails letting us know about this. So we've had to find out on social media."
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