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ST. LOUIS — The investigation of the superintendent of St. Louis Public Schools hinges on a spending spree that includes multiple six-figure salaries for people she knew from Seattle, where she previously worked.

The St. Louis Board of Education placed Keisha Scarlett, 50, on paid temporary leave on July 25 pending the results of the inquiry.

“When we placed her on leave, we engaged a third party to look into hiring practices, salaries and other spending,” said Matt Davis, board vice president.

The results of the investigation are expected in early September, Davis said.

Scarlett, 50, who was chief academic officer of Seattle Public Schools, became superintendent of SLPS in July 2023 with an annual salary of $268,000. During Scarlett’s brief tenure, the school district’s general operating budget plunged from a surplus of $17 million to a projected deficit of $35 million, which is mostly allocated for staff raises and extra transportation costs.

The district’s hiring practices under Scarlett took the spotlight in July when Phoenix Jackson, a spiritual adviser and brand influencer in Houston, became SLPS’ chief communications officer with a salary of $200,000.

The hire raised red flags about the school board’s approval of at least nine other new administrators connected to Scarlett who were awarded a total of $1.6 million in salaries. It is unclear if the board knew of the salaries, which are listed in letters of employment obtained by the Post-Dispatch through a public records request.

Three of the Seattle transplants remain with SLPS:

• Millicent Borishade, $230,000, came with Scarlett in July 2023 from Seattle, where she previously worked as an administrator in Tukwila Public Schools. Borishade was made SLPS’ chief of schools with a salary of $185,961. She was promoted July 1 to deputy superintendent, a newly created position that pays $230,000. On July 25, the board voted to make Borishade acting superintendent while Scarlett is on leave.
• Allison Deno, $200,000, was hired as chief of schools July 1 when Borishade got promoted. Deno worked with Borishade in the Tukwila School District, where both received a vote of no confidence from the teachers union in May 2023. Deno also serves as board president of a nonprofit Borishade founded in Washington state called Children Ready to Learn.
• Timothy Shultz, $140,000, is Deno’s husband and was hired as contract compliance manager on July 1.

Six staff members were terminated after Scarlett was placed on leave, according to district officials:

• Manal Al-ansi, $185,961, came with Scarlett from Seattle Public Schools, where she led racial equity programs. She became SLPS’ chief of staff for operational excellence, a newly created position, in August 2023.
• Nikka Lemons, $175,000, was hired as interim deputy chief of operations in March. She previously worked for two years in Seattle Public Schools as director of equity initiatives and outcomes. Lemons’ consulting firm Global Citizens Development was also paid at least $49,250 from SLPS for “researcher of best practices to advise.”
• Matthias Greywoode, $200,000, a mortgage analyst, became SLPS’ chief financial officer in May. He is chief financial officer for , another consulting firm founded by Lemons.
• Fatimata Sow, $120,282, was hired as senior project manager in August 2023 and was promoted in January to deputy chief of staff, another newly created position. Sow served as Scarlett’s intern at Seattle Public Schools.
• Thierno Barro, $168,269, is Sow’s husband. He was hired in December and became deputy chief information officer, a newly created position, in July.
• Zithri Saleem, $200,000, was scheduled to start as chief information officer, a new position for SLPS, on Aug. 30. Saleem is a frequent consultant for Seattle Public Schools.

At least 11 consultants awarded $1.4 million from SLPS in the past year also have connections to Scarlett’s time in Seattle. Six were approved by the school board through an emergency designation and without a competitive bidding process. The other five payments were to former Seattle Public Schools administrators and came in under $50,000, the threshold required for board approval.

Mayor Tishaura O. Jones said Thursday she will appoint an auditor to expand the scope of an annual financial audit of the school district required by state law.

The auditors will be asked to investigate contracts, conflicts of interest and whistleblower claims in addition to the school board’s oversight of staff hiring and firing. Earlier this month, Missouri Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick also launched a performance audit of SLPS.

“The city of St. Louis cannot succeed without a strong public school system,” Conner Kerrigan, a spokesman for Jones, said in a statement.