Atlanta Public School Cheating Scandal Many years ago, cheating was considered disgraceful and a sin. Today, however, cheating is something that happens on a day to day basis. Cheating has become more common in America, especially in colleges and high schools. Some students are copying answers from friends on their high school exams, and some teachers are changing answers on standardized tests. The Atlanta Public Schools cheating scandal is just one example of this. The cheating scandal refers to the accusations made against the Atlanta Public School District for cheating on the school’s standardized tests. These tests are extremely important in public schools and cheating on them is against the law. High school students are even expected …show more content…
Out of those thirteen, only eleven were convicted and sent to prison. One of the faculty members had passed away before the trial even began, the other member that was released was Beverly Hall, the superintendent of the school district. She denied any knowledge of the cheating, and had refused any involvement. She was diagnosed with breast cancer during the trial, and later passed away. The first defendant was Donald Bullock, who was one of the testing coordinators for the district. Others involved said that he was responsible for asking each of them to cheat on these tests. He was sentenced to five years probation and to serve every weekend for six months in prison. Angela Williamson, a teacher, was sentenced to two years in prison. Pamela Cleveland, a teacher, was sentenced to one year house arrest. Michael Pitts, the school’s executive, had encouraged the teachers to cheat, and told them not to speak to anyone about the incident. He was sentenced to seven years in prison. Tamara Cotman, the school’s administrator, was sentenced to seven years in prison along with Dana Evans, the school principal. Tabeeka Jordan, who was an assistant principal, was sentenced to two years in prison. Theresia Jordan, test coordinator, and Diane Buckner-Webb, a teacher, were both sentenced to one year in prison. Each of the defendants paid fines between one thousand and twenty-five thousand dollars and were forced to perform between one thousand and two thousand hours of community service