Over 200 unqualified Texas educators had someone else take their exams in cheating scandal, officials say [View all]

Source: NBC News

Oct. 30, 2024, 10:05 AM CDT
By Marlene Lenthang

Five people have been charged in Texas, accused of organizing and participating in an illegal cheating scheme that certified more than 200 unqualified teachers and saw the plot’s “kingpin” rake in more than $1 million, prosecutors announced.

In the scheme, individuals would typically pay $2,500 to have a proxy take certification tests for them at two testing centers in Houston. The scandal involved bribing a testing proctor to allow test applicants and their proxy to switch places, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg announced in a press conference Monday.

Overall, more than 400 fraudulent exams were taken and over 200 teachers were falsely certified on a variety of exams and are now scattered across the state. The scheme was traced back to May 2020, during the Covid pandemic.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/200-unqualified-texas-educators-someone-else-take-exam-cheating-scanda-rcna177984