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Capitol Notebook: State Auditor to review education licensing procedures in wake of DMPS hiring scandal
Also, Iowa House Democrats urge Regents to reject Trump higher ed compact
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State Auditor Rob Sand on Wednesday said his office has received a qualifying legislative request from Sen. Tony Bisignano, D-Des Moines, to review the Iowa Department of Education and the Board of Educational Examiners’ (BOEE) licensing and background check procedures for educators.
The request was made under Iowa Code 11.5C, which allows legislators to trigger reviews of state agencies.
In his Oct. 22 letter, Bisignano urged the audit in light of the licensing of former Des Moines Public Schools Superintendent Ian Roberts, who was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in late September after federal officials said his work authorization had expired in 2020. Roberts, originally from Guyana, resigned after his arrest and now faces federal charges for illegal firearm possession.
He said he was a U.S. citizen when he was hired by Des Moines Public Schools in 2023, according to district officials, who said they were unaware of the deportation order issued in 2024.
The Des Moines school board voted to sue JG Consulting, the firm that led its superintendent search, alleging it failed to identify false statements and verify Roberts’ credentials. The firm’s attorney said Roberts provided Form I-9 documentation attesting to his legal ability to work.
Download: Sen. Bisignano_letter to Auditor to review DE and BOEE background investigation process.pdf
“Des Moines Public Schools are taking an appropriate step by requesting an audit from the State Auditor’s office, but the responsibility for transparency extends beyond DMPS,” Bisignano said in a statement. “Iowans deserve to understand how processes at the state level failed to identify this series of deceptions.”
Gov. Kim Reynolds earlier this month signed an executive order directing all state agencies to begin using the federal E-Verify and SAVE systems to confirm the employment eligibility of state workers and the citizenship or immigration status of individuals applying for state-issued occupational and professional licenses.
Reynolds said the directive was intended to “put safeguards in place” following the Des Moines case.
The Department of Education has said that verifying work authorization is the employer’s responsibility, not the licensing board’s. It noted Roberts attested under penalty of perjury that he was a U.S. citizen and that the BOEE conducts standard background checks but not federal work authorization reviews.
“Hiring is a local decision and it is the employer’s responsibility to affirm a person’s I-9 employment eligibility verification,” the department said, adding that it is reviewing Des Moines Public Schools’ hiring procedures to ensure employees are legally authorized to work in the United States.
As part of the online licensure application, all candidates must provide official transcripts for every educational program they have completed. The BOEE reviews these transcripts to confirm their authenticity — verifying official seals, registrar signatures or watermarks.
The Department outlined a three-step process for background checks on initial applications for licensure:
- A four-part Single Contact Repository (SING) check of state criminal history from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation at the Iowa Department of Public Safety and three registries (child abuse, dependent adult abuse, and sex offender). The online system provides immediate alerts to the BOEE if any records are identified.
- An FBI fingerprint check, which typically takes two days to four weeks for federal results.
- A review of Iowa Courts Online, where BOEE staff evaluate any identified issues against standards outlined in Iowa Administrative Code chapters 282-9 and 282-11, which govern educator background check requirements.
General information about the BOEE’s background check process is available on the Department’s website at educate.iowa.gov/educator-licensure/applyrenewconvert/more-application-information.
The new review comes as Sand’s office also prepares to audit Des Moines Public Schools following Roberts’ arrest.
Bisignano said he hopes the state-level audit will “provide necessary accountability and begin to restore public trust.”
The Iowa House Government Oversight Committee has also requested records from Des Moines Public Schools to determine what went wrong.
House Democrats to Regents: Don’t sign Trump’s university compact
A group of 21 Iowa House Democrats is urging the Iowa Board of Regents to reject President Donald Trump’s proposed “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education,” warning that it poses serious risks to academic freedom, research integrity and the independence of the state’s public universities.
The lawmakers called the compact “a clear example of government overreach” that would tie research funding to political allegiance rather than academic merit.
“Iowa’s public universities are full of exceptional students, educators, and researchers,” said state Rep. Ross Wilburn, D-Ames, ranking member of the Iowa House Higher Education Committee. “We respect the faculty’s role in creating the great academic institutions we have today. The Board of Regents must protect those institutions and not put them at risk by signing onto a partisan agreement.”
The federal compact, unveiled Oct. 1, seeks commitments from universities on issues including admissions equality, tuition freezes, capped international enrollment and “institutional neutrality” in exchange for preferential federal treatment. Two-thirds of the nine universities initially approached — including MIT, Brown and the University of Virginia — have declined to sign.
“Graduates from Iowa’s universities are working in all 99 counties to develop new technologies, conduct vital research, and create and fill important jobs,” the lawmakers state in the letter. “Let’s focus on what we do well; let’s give our faculty and staff the freedom to educate young people and pursue important scientific discoveries free from political threats.”
Republican legislative leaders, including state Sen. Lynn Evans of Aurelia and state Rep. Taylor Collins of Mediapolis, last week urged Iowa’s Board of Regents to become the first in the nation to endorse the compact. Outgoing Regent David Barker, who resigned Monday to assume a federal post as assistant secretary for postsecondary education, also encouraged the board to sign, citing Trump’s executive orders on academic diversity.
“It is important to ensure that our faculty is intellectually and philosophically diverse,” Barker wrote in his letter. “Our students deserve to learn about multiple points of view on critical issues so they can make informed decisions on matters of public concern.”
The Board of Regents, which governs the University of Iowa, Iowa State University, and the University of Northern Iowa, has not commented on whether it intends to adopt the compact.
State officials highlight safeguards for upcoming city-school elections
As Iowans begin and prepare to cast ballots for the Nov. 4 city-school elections, Secretary of State Paul Pate and members of Iowa’s election security team are highlighting the safeguards in place to protect the integrity of the vote.
Pate said Iowa’s “layered approach” to election security — which includes paper ballots, public equipment testing, post-election audits, and 24/7 cybersecurity monitoring — has made Iowa one of the nation’s top-ranked states for election administration. A 2024 Iowa Poll found 91 percent of respondents were confident in the state’s election results.
“Election security is a year-round job, and our layered approach ensures Iowans’ votes are counted securely, fairly, and accurately,” Pate said in a statement, adding “Iowans can head to the polls this November with confidence.”
The state’s election security team includes the Iowa Department of Public Safety, Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, Iowa Department of Management’s Division of Information Technology, the Iowa National Guard, the FBI, and local election officials in all 99 counties.
John Benson, director of the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said the system “is designed to ensure that voters can participate with confidence in a system that is safe and secure.”
Iowa Department of Public Safety Commissioner Stephan Bayens said law enforcement will act aggressively to deter any criminal attempts to compromise elections.
“Iowans respect and actively exercise their right to vote and do so with civility and integrity,” Bayens said in a statement.
State Chief Information Security Officer Shane Dwyer added that Iowa’s Security Operations Center will provide round-the-clock cyberthreat monitoring and heightened support during the election period.
Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day. Voters can find polling locations or absentee voting information at voterready.iowa.gov.
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