Oklahoma Watch and reporter Jennifer Palmer sued State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters and the state Department of Education, asking a district court judge to order the release of public records the department refused to produce.

At issue is a resignation letter from Kourtney Heard, who served as the agency’s chief compliance officer for approximately 13 months, beginning in April 2024. Heard, now the member services manager for the Oklahoma Teacher Retirement System, spent more than 23 years as a criminalist with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation before moving to the Department of Education, according to her LinkedIn profile.

In its eventual denial of the April 9 request, an unsigned email from the department claimed the record was exempt under a section of the Oklahoma Open Records Act that allows for the discretionary release of certain documents when they are part of an internal personnel investigation, but there is no known investigation involving Heard. The department has provided resignation letters in the past, including that of former spokesman Dan Isett in February.

“The state Department of Education can no longer deny access to public records and expect the people of Oklahoma to accept it without question,” said Leslie Briggs, an attorney with the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, who represents the plaintiffs. “The Open Records Act ensures the people may exercise their right to know and be informed about their government. We expect OSDE to comply with those rights and will force compliance in court when they do not.”

Oklahoma Watch sought the resignation letter as part of an investigation into the agency’s hiring practices, which include at least three highly paid staff members who have little or no public education experience but extensive careers in political strategy. Matt Langston, the agency’s chief policy advisor, works remotely from Texas. The new chief of staff, Matt Mohler, recently worked in Florida.

The department denied Oklahoma Watch’s request last year for records showing when Langston entered the building that houses the Department of Education, an activity easily observable from the parking lot. The agency claimed the records were exempt from the Open Records Act under an anti-terrorism clause.

“In my experience, when a public body cooks up an excuse to hide a record, there’s a reason,” said Oklahoma Watch Executive Director Ted Streuli. “And that reason usually involves something incriminating or embarrassing.”

Agency spokesman Quinton Hitchcock declined to comment on the lawsuit.