Central ND News

Faith Dixon of Fargo, North Dakota, has pleaded guilty to three felony counts of theft by deception in Morton County Courthouse. The charges are related to her misuse of grant funds from a program administered by the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction (DPI). The grant was intended to support after-school programs for students impacted by Covid-19 school closures.

Dixon was approved for up to $350,000 for the "Faith 4 Hope" after-school program. However, DPI officials became concerned when initial disbursements showed significant conflicts of interest that violated the terms of the grant. Most recipients of the funding were family members of Dixon. Further investigation raised doubts about whether the after-school program was operating at all.

District Court Judge Bobbi Weiler accepted Dixon’s guilty pleas and scheduled sentencing for a later date. At sentencing, the state will recommend an 11-month felony sentence with incarceration, while the defense will ask for four months in jail and a reduction to a misdemeanor charge. Both sides agreed that Dixon will pay $775 in court costs and serve three years of supervised probation following her jail term. During probation, she must remain law-abiding and pay restitution, which is expected to exceed $100,000 but will be determined at a future hearing.

Attorney General Drew Wrigley stated: “I commend the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction. The DPI works hard to support strong programs for students while also making sure public dollars are spent responsibly and with accountability. We all want to ensure the money is being used to benefit children who participate in after-school programs, and this criminal prosecution should serve as a deterrent to others who might try to use these funds unlawfully.”

The case was investigated by both the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction and the State Bureau of Criminal Investigation. Prosecution was handled by Jeremy Ensrud, Criminal Division Director at the Office of Attorney General.