Report details spending by former charter school principal

(AP) – Delaware’s state auditor says the former head of a charter school in Dover used school funds to pay for more than $125,000 in personal items.

Auditor Thomas Wagner also said Tuesday that former Academy of Dover principal Noel Rodriguez used school funds to pay legal fees for lawsuits alleging sexual harassment, reimburse employees for alcohol purchases, and give financial rewards to teachers without adequate justification.

The auditor’s report also found roughly $130,000 in other expenditures that could not be validated as either school or personal purchases.

The report said the improper expenditures were the result of “a perfect storm of poor internal controls.”

Rodriguez was placed on leave last fall.

The attorney general’s office said Tuesday that its Office of Civil Rights and Public Trust will conduct an investigation.