Investigative Journalism

Museum Confidential: Season 8, Episode 12.

The Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics is seen in Oklahoma City.

Watchdog agency failed to perform required inspections at elite Oklahoma high school plagued by culture of harassment

Beth Wallis

An Oklahoma Watch investigation last year revealed a pervasive culture of harassment at an elite Oklahoma high school. StateImpact’s Beth Wallis spoke with Jennifer Palmer, the reporter behind the story, about a recent update: the agency responsible for addressing those issues failed to perform required inspections for 16 years.

From left to right: teachers Kay Bojorquez, Anita Hopson Malone and Kristina Stadelman are among at least nine Oklahoma teachers who received a sign-on bonus from the state and, shortly after, a demand to pay it back.

Local & Regional

Oklahoma’s Education Department awarded teachers life-changing bonuses — and created a nightmare for some by demanding them back

Beth Wallis

The Department of Education overpaid at least $290,000 in teacher bonuses and is working to claw back the money mere months after it was distributed. Nine teachers have been issued demands for repayment.

"A Year Inside America's Most Vulnerable, Important Profession" (Encore)

"This deeply researched and impressive study brings home the fact that America underinvests in the education of its children -- and that teachers step in to fill the gaps." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Tulsa police officer Ronni Carrocia laughs as she pushes on the bathroom door where Tulsa resident LaDonna Paris, 70, had locked herself during a bipolar episode on Oct. 25, 2021. The Tulsa Police Department investigated the actions of officers who responded to the incident, which landed Paris in jail. The department refused to release the results of that investigation. (Screen grab from body camera footage)

Local & Regional

Tulsa Police defy department policy by hiding internal investigation

Whitney Bryen

Tulsa police officers heckled a grandmother in the throes of a bipolar episode and then tackled her in October 2021. After completing an internal investigation, the department won’t say if anyone was held accountable.

"How a Daring Team of Parents and Doctors Forged a New Path for Medicine" (Encore)

"The story of a painful but inspiring search for a cure for a fatal disease.... A moving argument for a more focused, humane, and efficient system for conducting medical research." -- Kirkus (starred review)

A conversation about failure-to-protect laws with journalist Samantha Michaels

As our guest notes in an award-winning article that she wrote for Mother Jones Magazine: "Failure-to-protect laws are incarcerating women all over the country -- for other people's violence."

"We the Scientists: How a Daring Team of Parents and Doctors Forged a New Path for Medicine"

"The story of a painful but inspiring search for a cure for a fatal disease.... A moving argument for a more focused, humane, and efficient system for conducting medical research." -- Kirkus (starred review)

"The Teachers: A Year Inside America's Most Vulnerable, Important Profession"

"This deeply researched and impressive study brings home the fact that America underinvests in the education of its children -- and that teachers step in to fill the gaps." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Children of the State: Stories of Survival and Hope in the Juvenile Justice System"

"An eye-opening, fully humanizing, deeply affecting look at [America's] often-misunderstood juvenile justice system and its inhabitants -- young people of earnestness, disappointment, hope, and resilience." -- Booklist (starred review)