Longreads

Kiera Feldman is a reporter for The Nation Institute's Investigative Fund. She wrote "Grace in Broken Arrow" for This Land Press, which was featured on Longreads in May.

Read more guest picks from Longreads Best of 2012

The story of a sex abuse scandal inside a Tulsa Christian school, where church leaders were in denial and where the crimes shattered the lives of victims and their families:

"No more sleepovers. No more babysitting, or car rides home. No more being alone with children or 'lingering hugs given to students (especially using your hands to stroke or fondle).' Aaron Thompson—Coach Thompson to his PE students—sat in the principal’s office at Grace Fellowship Christian School as his bosses went through the four-page Corrective Action Plan point by point. It was October of 2001, the same month Aaron added 'Teacher of the Week' to his resume.

"Grace’s leader, Bob Yandian—'Pastor Bob' as everyone calls him—wasn’t there: no need, he had people for this kind of thing. Pastor Bob’s time was better spent sequestered in his study, writing books and radio broadcasts. His lieutenant, Associate Pastor Chip Olin, was a hardnosed guy, 'ornery as heck,' people said. Olin brought a USA Today article on the characteristics of child molesters to the meeting. At age 24, Olin explained, Aaron was acting immature and unprofessional, and someone might get the wrong idea."

As you walk the main hallway, a culture of inclusion unfolds. Hair styles change to reflect the ideal of glamour for a young black woman of a bygone era. In the 1970s, the afro suddenly asserts itself, loud and proud. In 1979, the first Asian face appears: a young émigré of Vietnam. That’s a good story. A few steps beyond and a white face appears among more black ones. In the last decade, the pattern portrays an explosion of diversity: South Asian, African-American, Caucasian, Hispanic. A reflection of the new America? Perhaps. Then the last face: a smiling young woman, her hair covered in a resplendent white hijab. Welcome to Booker T.

The Inside Story of the Oklahoman Behind the Biggest Military Intelligence Leak Ever