GILBERT, Ariz. — The former superintendent of the Scottsdale and Higley school districts has recently pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor offense and was sentenced to six months of unsupervised probation.
Denise Birdwell was initially indicted in 2021 on 18 felony counts in a criminal case that scrutinized the procurement processes of Higley Unified School District while Birdwell was the district's superintendent in 2012.
Birdwell and other defendants were accused of circumventing procurement rules in order to award a construction contract to specific bidder. The indictment also charged Birdwell with conflict-of-interest offenses.
Court records show Birdwell entered into a plea agreement on Sept. 6 for a misdemeanor charge of accomplice to purchase or appointment of office. The other remaining charges were dropped.
The defendant must pay a fine of $2,750 and as a condition of probation, Birdwell has agreed to "file amended tax returns and pay any outstanding tax, fines, or penalties due to the Arizona Department of Revenue," records show.
The Arizona Attorney General's Office declined to comment on the case's resolution.
After Birdwell left the Higley district, she was hired as the superintended of the Scottsdale Unified School District. In 2018, the district's Governing Board reached a severance agreement with Birdwell to end her contract early after a conflict-of-interest allegations came to light, according to KJZZ.
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