Des Moines school board suing search firm that found ex-Superintendent Ian Roberts [View all]

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2025/10/03/dmps-board-plans-lawsuit-search-firm-superintendent-ian-roberts/86485502007/

DMPS board suing search firm that found ex-Superintendent Ian Roberts
By Samantha Hernandez

The Des Moines School Board plans to move forward with a lawsuit against JG Consulting, the superintendent search firm that helped the district find and vet potential candidates and chose its now former Superintendent Ian Roberts.

Roberts, a native of Guyana, was hired by the school board in 2023 after the firm conducted a closed, nationwide search to replace former Superintendent Tom Ahart. He was much revered as the first person of color to lead the state's largest and most diverse school district.

But since his arrest by immigration officials Sept. 26, Roberts' background and DMPS hiring practices have come under scrutiny. Roberts was not authorized to work in the U.S. when he was hired; a federal complaint filed against him Thursday said he hasn't been allowed to work in the country since 2020.

Des Moines Register reviews also have found Roberts did not earn the doctorate Morgan State he frequently claimed he received and other alcolades listed on his resume were false.

The board paid $41,000 to JG Consulting for its work.

“The firm failed its duty to properly vet candidates," DMPS board chair Jackie Norris said at the meeting. "Ian Roberts should have never been presented as a finalist. If we knew what we knew now, he would have never been hired.”

Des Moines Public Schools is requesting a jury trial with damages for reputational harm, superintendent pay and costs related to additional hiring processes in an amount to be determined at trial. The district is represented by Ahlers & Cooney, P.C.

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