(Des Moines, IA ) -- Iowa's State Auditor says the state will not audit Des Moines Public Schools finances despite a call by three Iowa State Senators. Senators Jesse Green, Kerry Gruenhagen, and Lynn Evans say former superintendent Ian Roberts' deceptions and background discrepancies warrant the audit.

But in a statement to Newsradio 1040 WHO, Rob Sand says by law, lawmakers can only call for a state audit of a state department and that Des Moines Public Schools is not a department of the state.

“I agree with these descriptions of Ian Roberts' deceptions and agree that DMPS needs to be more transparent around what happened here. But these legislators 1) should know that their request, snarky or not, doesn’t give us the ability to audit a school district; 2) all voted to legalize hiding documents from the State Auditor's Office, which could block an audit of these issues, and 3) supported the vouchers law they chose to bring into this, which provides for no audits whatsoever of private schools spending public money, despite the fact that every public school district, including DMPS, is audited every year. They all have my number. Had they just called me, I could have saved them the embarrassment of the public learning these lawmakers don’t know, or don’t care about, the law. I will still take their calls to save them further embarrassment.”

Rob Sand, Iowa Auditor of State

Sand also tells Newsradio 1040 WHO that all Department of Education payouts to DMPS are automatically audited annually; and the school district already has an independent audit done every year.

See the full letter to the Officer of Auditor of State below.

On Thursday the DMPS Board approved the contract for a new superintendent. Matt Smith, the current associate superintendent who had been serving as interim superintendent, will serve through the 2026-27 school year. Smith says he's honored to step back into the position and help lead an amazing team. Smith has served as an associate superintendent since 2018.

More universities have come forward to question the Roberts' résumé. His résumé and LinkedIn (which is no longer active) page list a long list of accomplishments. However, his claims of degrees from MIT and Morgan State University are untrue, according to both institutions. Roberts also listed a 2013 Principal of the Year award from George Washington University while working in D.C. That school says it has no record of awarding such a recognition.

According to Des Moines Public Schools, Roberts’ background check did not include a review of the awards he claimed to have received. It did include checks of criminal and driving records, credit reports, and academic credentials.

The Des Moines Public School Board announced on October 3rd that it is suing JG Consulting, which is the firm that vetted Roberts. Millcreek Township School District in Erie, Pennsylvania may pursue legal action against Roberts. Roberts served as the Superintendent at the Millcreek Township School District prior to working in Des Moines. The Millcreek Township School District board voted Monday, October 6 to look into whether to sue Roberts and the firm that conducted his background check, Ray & Associates.

Roberts is in federal custody in the Polk County Jail in Des Moines, Iowa on weapons charges and charges he was in the country illegally.

Bill Handel

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