Tulsa Public Schools audit released after 2 weeks: Here's what we learned

The Oklahoma state auditor is releasing her forensic audit findings into Tulsa Public Schools.

State Auditor Cindy Byrd released the results at the State Capitol Wednesday afternoon after the district asked for a two-week delay.

Keys of the audit from Byrd:

1. The Devon Fletcher case was the catalyst for the audit.
2. The focus of the audit was on a small group of administrators, not what was being taught.
3. The audit found over 1,400 financial discrepancies, what Byrd described as "a culture of financial non-compliance."
4. The audit examined $37.3 million in expenditures and found that $25 million was spent in violation of the district's own policies.
5. TPS had made more than 700 payments to vendors without ever receiving the documentation needed to prove services.
6. Byrd referenced a summer intern hired in 2021 who was paid $13,000 for five weeks of work and given housing covered by the foundation. There was no evidence the intern's work was used by the district.
7. TPS had a disregard for invoices and proof of receipt was blatant, Byrd said. If closer attention was paid to this, Fletcher never would have been able to steal the money.
8. Out of 900 invoices, more than 300 lacked proper itemization.
9. Invoices didn't have specific services on them.
10. Budget-based invoices without information or description of services.
11. Difficult to hold vendors accountable when contract language is vague.
12. For two years, "Teacher Corps", a program for a path to teacher certification, operated without proper authorization, background checks and many of the participants did not meet any basic requirements for classroom instruction.
13. Byrd said the Teacher Corps became the vehicle for Fletcher's largest misappropriation.

Conflicts of Interest Involving TPS School Board Members

Two TPS executive administrators, Paula Shannon and Chris Hudgins, operated businesses outside their TPS employment, violating Board policy. 

Chris Hudgins, specifically, conducted business through his personal company with a school vendor, creating a conflict of interest. According to the audit, Hudgins owned M & G Consulting Services LLC and performed work for Allied Engineering (Allied), a TPS vendor. Allied received over $8.4 million from TPS between September 2015 and July 2024.

Hudgins managed TPS bond budgets and participated in the selection of vendors for TPS, including Allied. Work awarded to TPS vendors was sometimes subcontracted to M & G.

TPS Policy requires that no employee should have any outside business interests that might interfere with their loyalty to the District or impair their judgment in the best interests of the District.

"Board Policy 4409, Employee Conflict of Interest, requires that no employee should have any outside business interests that might, in fact or appearance, interfere with the employee’s loyalty to the District or impair the independent exercise of the employee’s judgment in the best interests of the District. This policy applies to all employees of the District."

Auditor Cindy Byrd said that these issues have been communicated to the proper authorities for further review.

Hudgins has resigned from the School Board, which is expected to accept his resignation during a special meeting Thursday night.

WATCH TPS OFFICIAL RESPONSE: Tulsa Public School officials react to audit report findings

Q&A portion of the audit:

1. "I think the chief financial officer of TPS is the one responsible for answering for all these financial issues," Byrd said.
2. The scope of the audit ended with the school year 2023.
3. "All of these issues had been communicated with Superintendent Johnson about nine months ago," Byrd said.
4. "I think that having a foundation to supplement public education is a wonderful thing," Byrd said. "We just need to see what we spend money on and make sure we’re doing things in a transparent manner."
5. "I think we are giving Dr. Johnson the playbook on how to go forward and be transparent and accountable," Byrd said.

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Why Was Tulsa Public Schools Audited?

Governor Kevin Stitt called for the audit in 2022 after concerns were raised over potentially mishandled public funds. At the time Stitt also said he was concerned that TPS had violated state law by teaching critical race theory.

Some of those events led to the arrest and conviction of former Tulsa Public Schools administrator Devin Fletcher was accused of misusing hundreds of thousands of dollars from the district.

Related Story: Former TPS Admin Sentenced To Prison For Wire Fraud, Ordered To Pay $593K In Restitution

Fletcher pleaded guilty that October and was sentenced to two and a half years in federal prison for stealing more than $600,000 from the district.

Why Were The TPS Audit Results Delayed?

Byrd stated in a press conference two weeks ago that attorneys for TPS have invoked Oklahoma Statute Title 70, section 5-127.1, which allows for school districts to delay the release of audit findings for two weeks.

"In my 28 years of conducting government audits, including countless school districts, no one has ever invoked this statute," Byrd said.

Interview with TPS Superintendent Dr. Ebony Johnson

News On 6 sat down with TPS Superintendent Dr. Ebony Johnson the day after the Feb. 11 news conference. Here's a link to that interview

Gov. Reaction

Gov. Kevin Stitt commented on the findings of the audit saying,

"I requested this audit in 2022, and today Auditor Byrd finally confirmed what myself and many other Oklahomans believed to be true— where there’s smoke, there’s fire. And it’s deeply troubling to see Tulsa Public Schools having engaged in such gross financial misconduct," said Governor Stitt. "The release of the audit is only the first step in holding wrongdoers accountable. The Attorney General needs to take immediate action and bring charges wherever possible. This can never be allowed to happen in Oklahoma again."

Here's some of our past coverage on the TPS audit:

1. TPS audit results withheld: Why the public can’t see the findings yet
2. Tulsa Public Schools responds to delay in audit release
3. Audit of Tulsa Public Schools stalled—Here’s what led to the investigation