Atlanta Public School Cheating Scandal

The Atlanta Public School system and the cheating scandal have been an up roaring issue for a couple years now.

About 35 former district employees were indicted on racketeering and other charges Friday as part of one of the nation’s largest cheating scandals.

Late Monday evening, about a dozen Atlanta children, parents and community activists praised the recent indictments of several former school administrators.  

The group, organized by Trump Tight, a self-described parent activist group, chanted “Save our schools,” and “Shame, APS” in front of local television news crews and passersby.

This story hit home because I attended Thomasville Elementary, Price Middle, and South Atlanta High school all school in which are Atlanta Public Schools.

Like many students I didn’t like taking the CRCT, nor the Georgia Graduation Test (GGT), but these tests was put into place for us to take before we were promoted to the next grade.

Retired Atlanta public schools superintendent Beverly Hall will have to pay a $200,000 bond to be released from jail, far less than the $7.5 million bond a grand jury recommended, said her attorney, David J. Bailey. He said $150,000 of that amount will be a signature bond, and $50,000 is a cash bond.

Former Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin finds this uproar about the Atlanta cheating scandal disturbing, and she shared a couple thoughts.

  Yes, cheating is awful. And so is conviction before a fair trial. I believe every accused person deserves a fair trial under a set of laws that promises to be just and balanced.

"I don’t support public hangings. It is barbaric. Never have and never will. I didn’t in the horrendous Nichols and Johnston murder cases, though some of my political advisors thought I could improve my voter favorability if I did.

"I didn’t then and I won’t now. The eagerness to convict someone cannot take precedence over our demand and respect for the fundamental legal principle that everyone who is charged has a right to a fair trial with competent representation….

"How else do we protect our democracy than to demand respect of the principles of fairness and justice even in challenging times? …[S]ay a prayer for a fair trial for all those charged, say a prayer for every family and child who has been touched by the scandal and say a prayer to calm the public lynching mob mentality that has begun. In times like this, reflection and soul-searching are powerful tools to ground our actions and decision-making."

All of the 35 educators indicted in the Atlanta Public Schools cheating scandal have been booked into the Fulton County Jail, with the final defendant turning herself in Wednesday afternoon.

Stay tune for more updates on the ongoing issue.