The Frontier

Why we report on Oklahoma’s homelessness crisis

A group of volunteers squeezed into an eight-seater van and slid the door shut. They were assigned Zone 15, a slice of ...
The Frontier

Oklahoma deserves the truth. Help us fight for it

Oklahomans are used to being told what our state is, what it isn’t, and what it should be. But the truth is more complicated.
The Frontier

With nowhere else to go, he slept in the emergency room

Oklahoma City has limited resources for people experiencing homelessness after they’ve been discharged from a hospital. Hospital social workers often have few options but to discharge people to the ...
The Frontier

She was charged with manslaughter after a miscarriage. Cases like hers are becoming more common in Oklahoma.

A growing number of women are facing criminal charges for substance use during pregnancy in Oklahoma. Experts and health care providers say that’s bad for moms and babies. Brittney Poolaw brushed away ...
The Frontier

This company promised to improve health care in jails. Dozens of its patients have died.

Turn Key Health Clinics has quickly expanded to jails in 10 states. Some of its policies and practices have endangered patients. NORMAN, Oklahoma — Two days after Thanksgiving in 2022, Shannon ...
The Frontier

Swadley’s Foggy Bottom Kitchen sometimes charged extra fees as part of a costly restaurant overhaul at state parks

A state oversight board once had the power to approve Tourism contracts, but legislation in 2018 stripped its powers. A Swadley’s Foggy Bottom Restaurant at Robbers Cave State Park near Wilburton ...
The Frontier

Criminal networks continue to thrive in Oklahoma’s marijuana industry as lawmakers weigh new measures

A sprawling Pawnee County marijuana farm with alleged ties to organized crime still operates with a state-issued cultivation license. GARRETT YALCH/The Frontier Pawnee County Sheriff Darrin Varnell ...
The Frontier

Under Ryan Walters, Oklahoma lost federal funding to help schools respond to tragedies

State education grant writers said they quit in frustration after a lack of support. Walters has vowed in the past not to pursue grants that don’t align with “Oklahoma values.” Oklahoma State ...
The Frontier

Toxic wastewater from oil fields keeps pouring out of the ground. Oklahoma regulators failed to stop it.

Salt water laced with cancer-causing chemicals, a byproduct of oil and gas drilling, is spewing from old wells. Experts warn of a pollution crisis spreading underground and threatening Oklahoma’s ...
The Frontier

Audit finds special interest groups gave Oklahoma private schools first-dibs on federal relief money while rejecting poor kids

State Superintendent Ryan Walters, then the head of a school reform group, guided shadowy efforts to distribute pandemic funds, leading to millions in questionable spending. Millions in federal relief ...
The Frontier

Julius Jones’ co-defendant admitted in prison to Paul Howell slaying, inmate says

“If this man is wrongfully executed, by continuing to conceal this information, I feel as if I would have had a hand in putting this man to death and I can’t live with that on my conscience,” Roderick ...