Job candidates with criminal records are no longer automatically barred from working for the Des Moines Public School District following a change in hiring practices recommended by new Superintendent Ian Roberts.
The shift which Roberts discussed during a public forum Sunday affords officials at Iowa’s largest and most diverse school district another tool in reaching its longtime goal of diversifying its staff, top administrators say.
“I believe that people are so much better than the worst thing they’ve ever done,” Roberts said at the forum, prompting applause. “I have overturned at least five or six decisions around not hiring individuals based on something in their background because they have an opportunity not only for them to be redeemed, but for them to add value to the students that we are serving.”
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