OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond called for an investigative audit of the Oklahoma State Department of Education following the resignation of former State Superintendent Ryan Walters.

Drummond reached out to Oklahoma State Auditor and Inspector Cindy Byrd in an official letter calling for the audit.

He stated, “A number of current and previous OSDE staff have raised credible concerns about the spending practices under [Walters’] leadership. You are well aware that the former Superintendent has a documented history of mismanaging tax dollars, as it was your office that exposed Mr. Walters for granting ‘blanket approval’ for families to purchase non-educational items like Xboxes and refrigerators.”

Due to this previous history and the current concerns raised by OSDE staff, Drummond said he’s now ordering an audit of the department for the time period between January 9, 2023, and September 30, 2025.

Drummond said he expects Byrd to address this matter quickly and thoroughly.

Byrd’s office initially believed she hadn’t received an official request from the Attorney General for the investigative audit, but were eventually able to locate it. 

Andrew Speno, Cindy Byrd’s press secretary, released the following statement:

“After searching her email account for the name Amber Alphin, Byrd did discover an email received about 30 minutes before the press release went out. The email was from an executive assistant at the AG’s office, a person Cindy Byrd has never met, not from the AG himself. In the past, the AG would call or visit Auditor Byrd before requesting an investigative audit. Given the seriousness of this request, I think direct contact from the AG would have been in order. Why the AG suddenly chose an intermediary to communicate with Auditor Byrd, I have no idea.”

To read Attorney General Drummond’s full letter, click here.