The Norman Transcript
Senator says
Jun
he was asked to
02 delete Epic emails
2020 By Ben Felder
The Frontier
Page A state senator says he was
asked to delete emails by
A002 the official who oversees the
Clip Oklahoma Virtual Charter
resized School Board weeks after she
downplayed her communica- assistance of the State in the
42% tion with him to an attorney protection of the privacy of
representing Epic virtual our children.”
charter school. Sharp said he searched
On Aug. 26, 2019, Sen. through the documents sent
Ron Sharp’s office published by the SVCSB and “none
a press release stating “recent appeared to contain student
correspondence with the info that is not statistical.”
Oklahoma Statewide Virtual In February, Oklahoma
Charter School Board veri- County Judge Cindy Truong
fies his concerns of further granted Sharp’s motion to
illegal enrollment practices dismiss Epic’s lawsuit.
by Epic Charter School in Last week, Epic filed a
order to receive additional motion asking Troung to
state funding.” reconsider her dismissal.
On Sept. 3, Bill Hickman, Sharp has been one of Ep-
Epic’s attorney, emailed ic’s most vocal critics in the
Rebecca Wilkinson, execu- state Legislature and has ac-
tive director of the virtual cused the school of enrolling
charter school board, asking virtual students in Oklahoma
her to “review your files and and Tulsa counties in Epic’s
provide any communications blended learning center,
with Sen. Sharp from January which is a separate school.
1, 2019 to present.” In his motion to dismiss
On Sept. 11, 2019, Sharp the lawsuit, Sharp’s lawyer
said Wilkinson asked his argued the senator is pro-
executive assistant to delete tected by statutory privilege
any emails she had sent the as a state legislator.
senator concerning Epic. The Oklahoma State
“I contacted senate Bureau of Investigations has
legal staff and they said you alleged Epic’s co-founders
should not do that,” Sharp have unlawfully profited off
said. “Why she wanted me to the school by manipulating
do it I don’t know.” enrollment records. Epic has
The information pro- denied any wrongdoing and
vided by Wilkinson and the no charges have been filed
virtual charter school board against the school.
to Sharp is a central part of a While Epic is suing Sharp,
libel lawsuit Epic filed against the school is the target of
Sharp last year. another lawsuit by the office
In an emailed statement to of the State Auditor and
The Frontier, Wilkinson said Inspector, which is seeking
she asked for one email to be financial records of the pri-
deleted because it contained vate company that manages
private student information. the school.
Wilkinson said: “The State- Last week, the state cham-
wide Virtual Charter School ber requested to join the case
Board has not requested all in defense of Epic, claiming
emails between the SVCSB that if the private company
and Senator Ron Sharp be managing Epic was forced
deleted. However, in an to make its financial records
attempt to honor an open re- public it would mean other
cords request made by Sena-
private companies that do
tor Sharp in 2019, a SVCSB
work for government entities
staff member sent a response
would face the same require-
with attached reports which
ment.
we later believed may have
contained a report that in- A hearing is scheduled for
cluded student information. Friday morning at the Okla-
Because we always consider homa County courthouse.
the safety and privacy of stu- The Frontier is a nonprofit,
dents first, an immediate re- independent news source based
quest to delete that one email in Tulsa. Frontier content is
was made. After a search was republished in The Transcript
conducted for that one email, through a special content agree-
nothing was discovered ment. For more information on
and no emails were deleted. The Frontier, visit readfrontier.
The SVCSB appreciates the org.
Property of OPS News Tracker and members of the Oklahoma Press Association.
