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	Former Dubuque Principal Charged Louis Stroschein Is Accused of Soliciting a Minor for Sex on Internet By Madelin Fuerste Telegraph Herald September 18, 2007 http://www.thonline.com/article.cfm?id=173504 Dubuque — A former elementary school principal with ties to Dubuque faces charges of soliciting a minor for sex on the Internet. Louis Stroschein, who was principal at St. Anthony Catholic School in Dubuque from 2004 to 2006, was arrested by deputies from the Black Hawk County Sheriff's Department Friday in Waterloo, Iowa. Stroschein, 31, was in his second year as principal at Shelby County Catholic School in Harlan, Iowa. The school is in the Des Moines Diocese. He is a 1998 graduate of Clarke College. Lt. Kent Smock, of the Black Hawk County Sheriff's Department, said investigators intercepted online chat messages that Stroschein had agreed to meet for sex with a girl whom he knew was younger than 16 years of age. He remains in the Black Hawk County Jail on $100,000 bond. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 25, in Black Hawk County criminal court. "He'd made arrangement to pick her up and then, according to his chat, was going to take her to a local motel," Smock said. Stroschein left St. Anthony Catholic School in Dubuque at the end of the 2005-06 school year when Holy Family Catholic Schools began a period of downsizing and reconfiguration of its buildings and staff. "I'm shocked and saddened at the information," said Holy Family Chief Administrator Steve Cornelius. "My prayers go out to his family. I'm totally shocked and dumbfounded." Dubuque Archdiocesan Superintendent Jeff Henderson said Stroschein's license and background checks did not indicate anything that would have prevented his hiring in Dubuque. "There was nothing ever brought to our attention or any issues like that," Henderson said. "We do background checks on everyone we employ. These are definitely the kinds of things we're looking for. In fact, it's one of the prime things we're looking for." The state of Iowa also performs background checks for an initial teaching license, as well as when a teacher wants a license renewal. State background checks include the employee signing a waiver that allows the State Division of Criminal Investigations and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to do background checks. The child abuse registry, sexual abuse registry and the dependent adult abuse registry are then cross-checked, according to the Iowa State Department of Education. Teachers and administrators also must submit a fingerprint to the FBI lab. Smock and other officers work in conjunction with the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force in tracking down Internet predators who intend to harm and abuse children. Officers either were doing a proactive investigation, in which they enter a chat room to monitor what is being said; or they were performing a reactive investigation, whereby they pose as a person who has notified them of wrongdoing and continue to chat with an abuser. Smock would not say which type of investigation was taking place involving Stroschein. "We were able to intercept the chats and actually view the chat he (Stroschein) was having with the person and learn what they were going to do," Smock said. "We intercept threats." Another administrator has taken over for Stroschein at Shelby County Catholic School, where staff members said they began cooperating with Black Hawk County officers after Friday's arrest. The Rev. Bob Hoefler, canonical administrator for the school appointed by the Des Moines Diocese, and other teachers met with students to explain what was happening with Stroschein. "We opened it up for questions, and they had a bunch of them," Hoefler said. "We'd like to think people are as safe as they can be because of the background checks. There was no indication. Our reaction to this was, 'What?' It was shocking and saddening and there's a sense of betrayal." Hoefler also said Stroschein "was doing an excellent job here as principal." Smock said the Internet is a great tool, but that parents need to monitor their children's use of it. "I can go online for half an hour and have half a dozen people talking inappropriately to me if I go on as an underage person," Smock said. "They're out there. There's a huge push now for education to get parents to monitor what their kids are doing. "It's not that they're doing anything wrong because they're not. They're falling victim."
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