Fake names sink Drake street petition
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A petition to honorarily name Drake University's Greek Street after a former president of a recently closed fraternity was pulled from the Des Moines City Council agenda Monday after the school determined that most of the names were fraudulent.
Why it matters: The episode underscores how easily support can be fabricated and why verification matters before policy moves forward.
Catch up quick: The request was to name 34th Street between University and Forest avenues "Agha Street" in honor of Agha Noor Ahmed Khan, one of the last presidents of Drake's Phi Gamma Delta fraternity before it closed late last year.
- The petition listed 20 names described as metro residents with ties to the university's Greek system or the broader DSM community.
Driving the news: Drake University launched an investigation into the request shortly after Axios published a story on Monday.
- "We have determined that most of the names on the petition are fake, including names attached to the supporting documents," Jerry Parker, vice president and dean of students at Drake, said in a statement to Axios.
Behind the scenes: Just hours before Parker's statement, a person claiming to be Khan emailed Axios, asking to speak about the matter.
Yes, but: The person did not leave a telephone number or respond to emails on Monday.
Reality check: A petition is among the first steps in DSM's street naming process.
- Various citizen board and commission reviews would have followed had the council agreed to consider the request.
The intrigue: The petition was submitted by "Kalsoom Asif," who listed an address in the 2500 block of University Avenue but doesn't specifically identify their role at Drake.
- A LinkedIn account that has no followers lists Asif as a computer science student at Drake, but Axios was unable to verify the information.
What's next: Drake is conducting an ongoing investigation, Parker said.