Embattled school district’s superintendent quitting post

WAUKEE, Iowa (AP) — The superintendent of the embattled Waukee Community School District will be leaving her post at the end of the school year.

The school board voted Monday to accept Superintendent Cindy McDonald’s resignation, effective June 30. The third year of her three-year contract will be voided.

A special state audit report released last month said administrators improperly used state credit cards and spent nearly $129,000 on items and services that “were not in the taxpayers’ best interest.” The report says the items included nearly $28,000 for lounge chairs and furniture for the superintendent’s office and more than $83,000 on district administrators’ retreats.

The district’s former chief operating officer, Eric Rose, is charged with two counts of solicitation to commit a felony and one count of felonious misconduct in office. Dallas County court records say Rose has pleaded not guilty.