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A legal fight rooted in transparency and trust has drawn to a close. The Ryan Walters-era OSDE lawsuit, filed by an online news organization against the Oklahoma State Department of Education over access to public records, has been resolved, according to court filings made public this week.

The resolution marks a turning point after months of friction over open-records practices at the state education agency.

Agreed Judgment Filed in Oklahoma County

Court documents posted Tuesday, Dec. 30, show that Oklahoma Watch, reporter Jennifer Palmer, and the Oklahoma State Department of Education jointly asked the court to enter an agreed judgment.

The motion was signed by Leslie Briggs, an attorney with the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press representing Oklahoma Watch, and Jacquelyne Phelps, interim general counsel for the state agency. The parties requested that Oklahoma County District Judge Don Andrews schedule a hearing to formally enter the agreed judgment.

The filing did not disclose the terms of the agreement. Briggs said exhibits tied to the motion were inadvertently removed during the electronic filing process, preventing her from sharing details until the issue is corrected.

Silence From the Agency, Transition in Leadership

Spokeswomen for the Department of Education did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment on the case’s resolution. The lawsuit’s conclusion comes roughly three months after Lindel Fields took over as state schools superintendent, replacing Ryan Walters, who resigned Sept. 30.

During Walters’ tenure, the agency developed a troubled reputation for its handling of open-records requests, drawing public criticism from Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond for delays and lack of responsiveness.

Backlog of Records Requests

Fields has said that when he assumed office on Oct. 2, the agency faced 88 outstanding open-records requests. That total did not include multiple requests from The Oklahoman that remained unresolved but had been marked as completed by agency staff under Walters.

Fields later told members of the State Board of Education that as of Friday, Dec. 18, the backlog had been reduced to 19 open requests, with hopes of bringing the number down to “single digits” by the end of 2025. It remains unclear whether that target was achieved.

Origin of the Lawsuit

Oklahoma Watch and Palmer filed the lawsuit on May 22 after the Department of Education denied an open-records request seeking the resignation letter of Kourtney Heard, who served as the agency’s chief compliance officer from April 2024 to April 2025.

In denying the request, the agency cited an exemption under the Oklahoma Open Records Act, claiming the document was tied to an internal personnel investigation and therefore subject to discretionary release. Oklahoma Watch said there was no known investigation involving Heard at the time.

Resignation letters are typically released by state agencies upon request. Prior to denying the Heard request, the department had complied with similar requests from multiple news outlets.

Letter Obtained Through Other Means

Another online outlet, Oklahoma Voice, later obtained Heard’s resignation letter from a source outside the agency after its own request was denied. The outlet reported that the letter accused the department of manipulating the school accreditation process and deleting employee review records.

“The challenges faced by the agency are significant,” Heard wrote, according to Oklahoma Voice, adding that without changes to operational practices and leadership attitudes, the agency would fall short of delivering what Oklahoma students deserve.

A Closing Chapter

Ted Streuli, executive director of Oklahoma Watch, said Friday that the outlet has since received a copy of Heard’s letter directly from the Department of Education.

“It’s worth noting this was an agreed judgment, not just a settlement,” Streuli told The Oklahoman. “It’s great to see the new administration taking responsibility and doing the necessary clean-up.”

With the Ryan Walters-era OSDE lawsuit now resolved, attention shifts to whether the agency’s renewed commitment to transparency will hold as Oklahoma’s education system moves forward.