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[quote=Anonymous][twitter]https://x.com/laurapowellesq/status/1976443494463098987?s=46&t=R0sFrGNc8GH_7llJGM-81g://x.com/laurapowellesq/status/1976443494463098987?s=46&t=R0sFrGNc8GH_7llJGM-81g[/twitter]

While I have to wait on responses to public records requests, the Associated Press has picked up where I left off on the story of Nicole Price’s professional ties to Ian Roberts. (Link to the article in the comments, along with my prior posts on the subject.) Price employed Roberts, and I’ve also heard credible allegations that they were romantically involved.

In September 2023, Roberts proposed that the Des Moines school board award $116,000 in contracts to Price’s consulting firm, Lively Paradox, and another company. According to a district spokesperson, the CFO flagged the apparent conflict of interest and spoke with Roberts about it. Roberts later told board members he was canceling the proposal after receiving “an update from the finance team.” The board says it was unaware of the real reason for the cancellation at the time.

Just a few months later, in December 2023, the district paid Price $6,476 for leading a two-hour exercise at a school board retreat. Roberts approved that smaller payment himself, without board involvement. The AP reports that the board did not learn of Roberts’s relationship with Price until July 2024, when they were again considering hiring her.

The article omits one important detail—the board has said it received a resume from Roberts during his 2023 interview, and every publicly available version of that resume lists Lively Paradox as a past employer.

Board chair Jackie Norris told the AP that concerns of a conflict of interest were addressed with Roberts at that time, which was almost a year after the CFO had spoken to him about the problem. (I question whether these apparent private communications between the board and Roberts on the topic complied with Iowa’s open meetings laws.) “I strongly feel that a review is needed of all expenditures related to the former superintendent,” Norris told the AP.

Price counts several of Roberts’s other former employers—Millcreek Township School District, St. Louis Public Schools, and Aspire Schools—among her own clients. She told the AP she saw nothing improper about her work with Roberts’s employers.

The two also co-authored several self-published books, which Price admitted sold poorly. She said most sales came from Roberts purchasing copies to hand out at conferences. Despite that, she told the AP that Roberts’s wife encouraged her to move forward with a new book project. (A source has told me Price remains in regular contact with Roberts while he is in custody, though I have no way to confirm that.)

Despite her upbeat tone in interviews and continued defense of Roberts, Price has quietly removed references to him—and to their joint projects—from her websites in recent days. Perhaps she’s hoping the publicity will boost her business, but she also appears to be hedging against the risk of standing by an apparent conman and alleged criminal.[/quote]

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