Sheryl Williams Stapleton facts for kids

Sheryl Williams Stapleton (/ˈstæpəltən/ stap-ƏL-tən; born July 30, 1957) is an American politician and educator who served as a member of the New Mexico House of Representatives from 1995 until her resignation in July 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, she also served as the majority floor leader in the House from 2017 to 2021.

Early life and education

Stapleton was born in Saint Croix. She was raised in Chicago and New York City. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in education from New Mexico State University, followed by Master of Arts in multicultural education and PhD in educational leadership from the University of New Mexico.

Career

Prior to entering politics, Stapleton worked as an educator in the Albuquerque Public Schools. She also served as the coordinator for the Schools to Careers Program and assistant principal of the Career Enrichment Center. She was first elected to the New Mexico House of Representatives in 1994 and is the first African-American woman elected to the New Mexico Legislature. She has also served as vice chair of the Democratic Party of New Mexico and a member of the Democratic National Committee from New Mexico. Following the 2016 elections, Williams was chosen by the Democratic Caucus of New Mexico as house majority leader. She was the first African American majority leader of the New Mexico House.

Investigation and Resignation

Investigators from the New Mexico Attorney General's office executed a search warrant on July 27, 2021, on Stapleton's home, business, and employer.

On July 30, 2021, Stapleton resigned from the House amid a criminal investigation into alleged "racketeering, money laundering, receiving illegal kickbacks, and violations of the New Mexico Governmental Conduct Act".

On Aug 31, 2021, Albuquerque Public Schools fired Stapleton from her position as Career and Technical Education director.

Stapleton was charged in state court on September 20, 2021, with 28 criminal counts, including racketeering, money laundering and fraud by diverting funds from Albuquerque Public Schools and receiving kickbacks from Robotics Learning Management LLC "in return for arranging or recommending the purchase, lease or ordering of the company’s goods by Albuquerque Public Schools."

On March 26, 2024, Joseph Johnson, owner of Robotics Management Learning Systems and Sheryl Williams Stapleton were indicted in Federal Court due to Federal funds being used during the fraud in the case. The 23 page indictment alleges that Johnson provided blank checks that allowed Stapleton to get kickbacks of $1,152,506 from the funds that were paid to Robotics Management Learning Systems through a mixture of State and Federal Perkins Funds.