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John Dewey High School Principal Fired After Report Reveals Grade-Fixing Scandal

Alex Ellefson

— 2 min read
John Dewey High School Principal Fired After Report Reveals Grade-Fixing Scandal
John Dewey High School. (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
John Dewey High School. (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

The principal at John Dewey High School will be fired after a recent investigation revealed she oversaw a massive grade-fixing scheme meant to inflate graduation rates, the New York Times reports.

A 22-page investigation released Wednesday by the Department of Education’s Office of Special Investigations found that most students enrolled in the school’s late night credit recovery program passed without doing much of the work, or having very poor attendance.

“The results of the investigation are disturbing and show there was a failure to follow the DOE’s protocol during the 2013-2014 school year,” Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña said in a statement sent to WNYC.

Students nicknamed the program “Easy Pass,” and its use was so widespread that many of the seniors shouted the moniker during their graduation ceremony, a former student told WNYC.

The principal, Kathleen ­Elvin, has already been removed from the school. She will be replaced by Connie Hamilton, the principal of Kingsborough Early College School, according to the New York Post. Two assistant principals, Andrew Kenney and Joseph Antonucci, will also be disciplined for facilitating the program.

The Post also reported that the DOE began investigating the school after receiving anonymous complaints in 2014 from teachers who alleged grades had been changed without their knowledge so that students passed their classes. Other details in the investigation reveal teachers were assigned classes they were not certified to teach and some teachers were falsely reported as the instructor for a class they never taught.

John Dewey was one of several schools the Bloomberg administration tried to close due to low graduation rates in 2012. However, the school remained open after the teachers union filed and won a lawsuit.

Elvin was appointed the school’s principal in 2012 and tasked with raising the school’s graduation rates, which have since climbed from 66.5 percent to 74 percent last year, according to WNYC.

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