Des Moines superintendent has license revoked after being detained by ICE

SIOUX CITY (KTIV) - Dr. Ian Roberts was the superintendent of Iowa’s largest school district before being detained by immigration authorities. Following this, Iowa’s Board of Educational Examiners has now revoked his superintendent’s license.

The board‘s website shows the decision was issued on Sunday, Sept. 28.

In the board’s official order, when referring to Roberts’ license, it says, “The license issued by the Board of Educational Examiners is no longer valid and your authority to serve as a superintendent is revoked.”

The order says the decision was made after it was learned that Roberts no longer possesses “legal presence in the United States.” Under Iowa law, this means Roberts is not able to hold a license issued by the board.

Des Moines school officials confirmed that Roberts joined the district in July 2023 and stated that he had held education leadership positions across the U.S. for the last 20 years.

“The Iowa Board of Educational Examiners issued Dr. Roberts a license to serve as superintendent in the state of Iowa in July 2023,” said Des Moines School Board President Jackie Norris during a news conference held after Roberts’ detainment.

The order says Roberts can appeal the decision if he submits the paperwork by Oct. 28, 2025. The full order can be read below.

Des Moines Public School Board Special Meeting

The school board met for a special session Monday, heading to a closed session shortly after convening. After returning, school board president Jackie Norris read a statement saying at 2:15 p.m. Monday, the school district received a document from U.S. Department of Homeland Security notifying them that Roberts was an unauthorized worker, and at 3:45 p.m. received a copy of the final order of removal issued by the U.S. Department of Justice and signed by an immigration judge.

“This latest news means that at this time, unless we receive (new) material information tomorrow at noon demonstrating that Dr. Roberts is eligible to work, our board will commence the process required by Iowa Code Chapter 279 to end the contract with the superintendent,” Norris said.

Roberts was given a “final order of removal by an immigration judge” in May 2024, according to ICE, after he had come to the U.S. in 1999 on a student visa.

Norris said in a news conference Monday that the school board “cannot confirm how the Board of Educational Examiners made their decision,” but that DMPS has asked for documentation about how the state board reached the decision to remove his license. She also emphasized the school board has given time for Roberts’ legal team to respond.

“It is very important for us to take a moment and make sure that we have the basis for any decision we made,” Norris said. “So we have asked Dr. Roberts’ attorney, by tomorrow at noon, to provide a set of documents, including the information to verify his citizenship status.”

There have been several questions about DMPS’ vetting process for Roberts. Officials with the school district have said they were unaware of the 2024 removal order or that Roberts may have misrepresented himself as a U.S. citizen, though Norris said the district has not yet been able to independently verify much of the new information shared following his arrest.

School officials have confirmed Roberts completed the I-9 employment eligibility verification form and submitted the required documentation showing he was eligible for employment with the district when hired. In a news release, officials also highlighted that Roberts’ license had been approved by the BOEE in July 2023 and that he had worked in education leadership positions in other U.S. states, including in California, Missouri, and Pennsylvania, for more than 20 years.

Dr. Ian Roberts’ detainment

Roberts was detained on Friday, Sept. 26, during what ICE was calling a “targeted enforcement operation.”

According to ICE, officers identified themselves and approached Roberts, who was in his vehicle. Roberts reportedly sped away, and officers say they found his vehicle abandoned near a wooded area. The Iowa State Patrol helped find Roberts, who was then taken into ICE custody.

“ICE Des Moines arrested Ian Andre Roberts, a criminal illegal alien from Guyana, in possession of a loaded handgun, $3,000 in cash and a fixed blade hunting knife,” stated ICE in a press release. “At the time of his arrest, Roberts was working as the Superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools despite being an illegal alien with a final order of removal and no work authorization.”

Des Moines Public Schools named an interim superintendent the same day of Roberts’ detainment. There were also protests in Des Moines that Friday, in support of Roberts.

Eventually, Roberts was placed into Northwest Iowa’s Woodbury County Jail. That jail has a contract to house federal inmates, and Roberts is one of several individuals being housed in Woodbury County for ICE-related cases.

There was a protest at the Woodbury County Jail on Saturday, Sept. 27, where several people gathered with signs calling for Roberts’ release and opposing ICE’s actions across the country.

Background on Ian Roberts

According to The Associated Press, a biography for Roberts listed on the Des Moines district’s website said he was born to immigrant parents from Guyana and spent much of his childhood in Brooklyn, New York.

Coppin State University’s website features an alumni profile of Roberts, who graduated from the school in Baltimore in 1998. In it, Roberts said his father immigrated to the United States in the 1980s, and his mother immigrated in the early 2000s.

ICE said that Roberts entered the U.S. on a student visa in 1999. The next year, he competed for Guyana in the Olympics in track and field.

Before coming to Iowa, Roberts had previously worked as superintendent of the Millcreek Township School District in Pennsylvania.

“However, what we do know is that Dr. Roberts has been an integral part of our school community since he joined over two years ago,” said Norris. ”During his time with our district, he has shown up in ways, big and small, and has advocated for students and staff and begun introducing concepts that will help us reimagine education for future generations of Des Moines students."

Des Moines Public Schools serve more than 30,000 students and have nearly 5,000 employees.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

Want to get the latest news and weather from Siouxland’s News Source? Follow these links to download our KTIV News app and our First Alert Weather app.