Walters under investigation; Fields promises return to normalcy, civility and students above self
The horse may be out, but Oklahoma’s elected officials are, at last, trying to lock the barn door.
Last week — as everyone with a newspaper, radio station, television transmitter, website, blog or Substack account reported — Attorney General Gentner Drummond asked State Auditor Cindy Byrd to audit the Department of Education’s spending during Ryan Walter’s tenure.
“Given the former Superintendent’s well-established history of mishandling tax dollars, combined with new and ongoing allegations of misspending,” he wrote, “I am now ordering an investigative audit of the Oklahoma State Department of Education.”
That request came after Walters’ resignation, as did yesterday’s announcement that the Ethics Commission will investigate a possible conflict of interest between Walters state job and his new employer, the Teacher Freedom Alliance, which he promoted this year using official channels.
When Walters announced his resignation, Rep. Ellen Pogemiller, D-Oklahoma City, requested the investigation.
“This development strongly suggests that his prior actions were motivated by personal financial or professional gain, further underscoring the need for investigation,” Pogemiller wrote in her complaint.
It won’t be either agency’s first Walters rodeo. The Ethics Commission twice settled with him over illegal campaign spending and a grand jury empaneled by the AG, unable to find indictable conduct, nonetheless wrote a scathing report that labeled Walters’ financial behavior indefensible.
Lindel Fields, who will fill out Walters’ term, quickly restored the Educators Hall of Fame, which Walters had dismantled. Yesterday, Fields started a presser not by snarling at reporters, but by individually shaking hands and introducing himself to each of the 30 or 40 journalists seated around the table before sitting down and promising a return to normalcy, civility and students above self.
Education, meet class.
Fields will ‘focus on education’
Fields said he’ll spend the next 15 months stabilizing and strengthening the Department of Education for whomever is elected to state superintendent in 2026. Fields, a retired career tech administrator, isn’t running.
“None of the 15 months is going to be about trying to convince you to vote for me, so we’re going to focus on education,” he said.
Appointed by Gov. Kevin Stitt last week to replace Ryan Walters, Fields was sworn in Tuesday. In a meeting with local media that afternoon, he laid out his priorities, which includes improving communication with agency staff, school employees, and local media.
The agency will conduct a review of all pending lawsuits, vendor contracts and open records requests. And they’ll be working to assemble the agency’s fiscal year 2027 budget proposal to present to the Board of Education at its October 23 meeting.
The board gathered Thursday for a special meeting. The board was expected to consider dismissing an effort to revoke the teaching certificate of Regan Killackey, who was targeted over a five-year-old Instagram photo, among other teacher licensing actions.
Oklahoma Watch (OklahomaWatch.org) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.
