Clayton Ridge schools reported 63 online students left; the state found over 1,700 did
Clayton Ridge Community School District in Guttenberg runs the Iowa Virtual Academy, a statewide online school that reached just over 3,000 students in a year. A separate Iowa Department of Education investigation of three district administrators, described in a December 2025 letter to the superintendent, found the district reported 63 students leaving the academy when more than 1,700 left at some point during the year; KCRG reported the letter also flagged billing discrepancies. In November 2025 the Iowa Board of Educational Examiners found probable cause that Superintendent Shane Wahls, the middle and high school principal and the dean committed ethics violations, including failing to report child abuse and to protect student and staff safety. All three stayed in their jobs. Wahls declined to discuss the investigations, and the district declined to comment. The ethics case was pending at last report.
The district reported 63 students left the academy, when in reality, more than 1,700 students left at some point in the year.
Despite this, all three employees remain active in their roles at Clayton Ridge Community Schools as of this morning.
details discrepancies in records for the Iowa Virtual Academy
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