Superintendent fired after sex-ring bust
Rural school system facing changes after news of sex scandal breaks
By Isaac Dennis, Kayla Dunn, Seth Fish and Avery Fulton
Oct. 20, 2019
*Names have been changed to protect the privacy of minors.
Editor's Note: Ripley was averse to media coverage. The majority of people declined to comment or said they had been loyal to not speaking with the press before and would continue to be loyal to Ripley. As journalists, collecting information from rural communities as outsiders proved to be difficult. Because of people’s hesitation to speak, discerning the truth or the community’s commonly held beliefs was nearly impossible without speaking to outside sources.
RIPLEY, Okla.— After the revelation of an underground prostitution-ring involving two Ripley school officials last week, residents were hesitant to comment on the situation.
Stillwater News Press reporter Michelle Charles initially reported on the Ripley story when Superintendent Kenneth Beams was arrested for having been known to solicite prostitution in Tulsa. Beams was the second person arrested in what has been referred to as Operation Velvet Fury; the first being former Ripley middle school teaching assistant Kacey Williamson.
Steve Jordan has been the senior Pastor at Ripley’s Church of God since 2012. Jordan has faith in Ripley’s small but tight-knit congregation, and he expressed his confidence in the community to overcome the “wicked” acts that occurred there. The Church of God has been operating in Ripley since the late 1800s and brings in congressional members from as far away as Yukon, Oklahoma.
Ripley Sophomore Andy Jones* expressed how the revelation impacted his friends and how they went about their days at school. Standing in Jones’ front yard, the vacant school stood visible in the background. Amidst car parts and yard equipment, Jones discussed the struggle of school authority figures banning all conversations about the scandal. He explained that the truth seemed muddled, and the only information they received came from surrounding area- news stations.
Ben Hartford*, an eighth grader in Ripley School systems, said his math teacher, Ms. Williamson, was part of the scandal. He explained how Ms.Williamson was removed from his classroom and how his class was put on hold while school officials scrambled to find a replacement. Having grown up in Ripley, Hartford said he had not been sheltered and was not shocked about the scandal but the events still impacted him greatly.
Charles said she can see the various conversations that could come out of an event like this.