The week in coveducation: Federal grants, canceled events and an Epic audit
Part one of an audit of Epic Charter Schools was released by State Auditor & Inspector Cindy Byrd this week claiming that the charter schools owe Oklahoma $8.9 million for violation of a statute limiting administrative costs at such schools.
Meanwhile, a group of parents at Stillwater Public Schools have requested that a judge order the district to resume in-person classes full time.
The State Department of Education also received $15.2 million in federal grants to support districts in meeting the needs of their students.
Catch up on the week’s #coveducation news with this recap of headlines from around Oklahoma.
Epic Charter Schools audit released
A report released by the State Auditor & Inspector’s Office on Thursday claims Epic Charter Schools owe Oklahoma $8.9 million after allegedly violating state law that limits how much money a charter school can spend on administrative costs. The audit also claims the schools used state tax dollars to fund a venture in California and only repaid the money after being detected by auditors.
NonDoc reported that State Auditor and Inspector Cindy Byrd was asked to audit the charter schools by Gov. Kevin Stitt in 2019.
“I’ve seen a lot of fraud in my 22 years, and this situation deeply concerns me,” Byrd said of the audit.
The Epic audit is being turned over to Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter’s office, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and the Oklahoma Tax Commission. Byrd said the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service and the Office of Inspector General will also receive the 120-page Epic audit.
“We have received the audit and will review it,” said Alex Gerszewski, communications director for Hunter.