(Main perp schools Superintendent Beverly) Hall: 'I Deeply Regret' Atlanta Cheating Scandal

WSBTV ^ | 8/10/11

[Libloather]

Hall: 'I Deeply Regret' Atlanta Cheating Scandal
WSB-TV
Updated: 2:44 pm EDT August 10, 2011

**SNIP**

Hall retired from Atlanta schools just days before state investigators released a scathing report implicating nearly 180 educators in the scandal. Educators accused in the probe said they were under immense pressure to improve students' scores by any means possible amid a culture of "fear and retaliation," investigators said.

Educators, who said they were either directed to cheat by superiors or felt they had no other option, huddled in back rooms at night erasing wrong answers and filling in correct ones or led students to choose correct answers through voice inflection, investigators found. Some seated students next to their higher-performing classmates so they could copy answers.

Teachers who reported the cheating to administrators were punished or fired, investigators found.

Hall's column is the second time she's written publicly about the cheating scandal since her retirement June 30. Just days after the July 5 state investigation was released, Hall — who has largely kept quiet about the investigation because she could face criminal charges — apologized to the people of Atlanta in an op-ed piece in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

But she has stopped short of taking responsibility for the cheating, saying she thought she put enough measures in place to prevent such behavior.

She wrote in Wednesday's column that the cheating scandal should not overshadow the legitimate gains made by Atlanta students since more testing security was put in place last year. Hall said under the "strictest testing conditions," about 80 percent of students in most grades performed at acceptable levels.

[Libloather]

...she could face criminal charges...

Atlanta Public Schools superintendent Dr. Beverly Hall shows off her 2009 Superintendent of the Year award. Hall was "honored" by the American Association of School Administrators for "increasing Atlanta district's test scores and graduation rates."

Hall has since come under fire for cheating scandals, where rampant, systematic cheating on test scores involved 44 schools and 178 teachers and principals. During the time the cheating was going on, Hall was honored as “Superintendent of the Year” by the American Association of School Administrators for increasing test scores.

[Moose4]

She *could* face criminal charges...but she won’t. Not in Atlanta. She’s protected.

All she “deeply regrets” is getting caught. But at least she’s getting to take an early retirement, no doubt with a fat pension paid for by Atlanta’s taxpayers.

}:-)4

[AppyPappy]

She was just trying to help The People get over.

Fired teachers who blew the whistle. Must be a Democrat.

[DJ MacWoW]

After 42 Days FR Is Still Short Of Its Goal
If Free Republic Ends We Lose
And This Man Wins

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[Liz]

Beverly Hall, a big-time calculated liar and con artist......is a walking crime wave.

One observer claimed that, for public consumption, Hall puts on a sweet, sap-happy "Grandma’s Baking Sugar Cookies" act but behind the scenes she’s a ruthless, savage hag, dropping victims left and right like an armed fascist dictator.

Her activities in the state of NJ (before she absconded to GA) need to be exposed.....and prosecuted when warranted.....including the $73 million education budget item that disappeared under her watch.

You have to wonder how Hall ever got educator credentials. Is her doctorate legit? All of her CV should be rigorously scrutinized.....together with all official documents under her signature (falsifying govt documents is a felony).

[The Great RJ]

The woman should have been fired on the spot since she admitted the cheating. The US District Attorney should also be investigating her for defrauding the US government as these phony scores were used to get more federal dollars. I am certain if she had been white Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton would be protesting how poor Black children had been robbed of their education.

[Tijeras_Slim]

The Chief Moose of education.

[Da Coyote]

She was just protecting “her peoples”.

Agree - nothing will happen to her. She’s a “protected minority”.

(My full apologies and respect to the many, many African-Americans I’ve known over the years....all possessing morals, intelligence, and achievements far, far, FAR superior to this idiotess and her cretin president.)

[Trailerpark Badass]

I'm not surprised we haven't heard anyone authority talking about making her give back over a half-million dollars in performance bonuses directly tied to those fraudulent test scores.

But hey, it ain't their money.

[Mikey_1962]

Classic Liberal reaction: don't enforce the standard, lower the bar until the standard is meaningless. If you have to cheat to do that, well its all in the game.

[freeangel]

“no doubt with a fat pension paid for by Atlanta’s taxpayers.”

She also got hundreds of thousands in bonuses for doing such “oustanding” work for which she took credit for. It seems to me she can now take credit for the failing APS and give back the money. Oh yea, and the taxpayers are now stuck with defending her, too. Ya gotta hand it to these affirmative action babies—they really know how to screw the taxpayers and they really don’t care if the majority are Holders people.

[Liz]

This is all about educator greed and criminality---children never factored into the equation.

REFRENCE-----Channel 2 Action News, Atlanta, has obtained records detailing bonuses paid to teachers and staff at schools implicated in the Atlanta Public Schools cheating scandal. Channel 2's Tom Regan put in a request for the documents on bonus payments two weeks ago. He received the records on Tuesday and has been poring over the documents.

Regan said the documents detail bonuses that were paid out from January 2009 to the present.

According to the documents, performance bonuses ranged from $100 to $1,500. Virtually the entire staff, teachers, principals, permanent substitutes and secretaries got bonuses when the school reached performance goals for testing and attendance. Regan found that 15 of the 44 schools named in the cheating scandal received a total of $645,000 in bonuses.

What Channel 2 doesn't know is how much of that money was from corporate contributions and how much was paid by taxpayers. (Excerpt) Read more at wsbtv.com ...

“ Gimmee da money.”

[alancarp]

"She was just protecting “her peoples”."

More blatantly misguided liberalism: short term gains for long term tragedy. How about all those kids who were denied a better education because their scores were changed to be "just good enough"? Those are the real victims.

She screwed her 'own people' for the sake of her own job and the applause that went with it.

[NRA1995]

didn’t even need to see the photo to guess her race, weight, haircut....typical liberal butt-head....

[sr4402]

All she “deeply regrets” is getting caught. But at least she’s getting to take an early retirement, no doubt with a fat pension paid for by Atlanta’s taxpayers.

Yes, she "deeply regrets" being found out as the head cheater.

She does not regret the Cheating, nor trying to cover up a bad school district.

But she "deeply regrets" not being able to further the liberal/progressive causes in the school district of Atlanta.

My advise: Flee Government run schools! Their plunge into immorality is assured.

[struggle]

SEND HER TO JAIL.

When one kid acts up in my classroom, all the other kids want that kid to be sent out so that they can GET THEIR WORK DONE.

When one superintendent acts illegally, they need to jail her so that OTHER SUPERINTENDENTS WONT FOLLOW SUIT.

Public schools can work, if you have a superintendent that values real teachers and not autoanimatrons that simply erase standardized tests for you.

[SMARTY]

“Educators accused in the probe said they were under immense pressure to improve students’ scores by any means possible amid a culture of “fear and retaliation ...”

I do not believe ALL the accused were complicit ONLY under duress. I am sorry, but I know entirely too many Liberal, establishment-hating, benefits-junkies, union ‘teachers’ to believe that for one instant.

ALL of them are at fault and equally corrupt. If they were not asked to cheat, they probably would be doing it anyway ON THEIR OWN! THAT’S how low my opinion of teachers is.

[LearnsFromMistakes]

under immense pressure to improve students' scores

Let me see if I understand. she cheated...many cheat...trying to 'meet standards'. Isn't a waiver coming from DC to say that these 'standards' don't have to be met in given time frames? But, at the same time, raising standards of fuel efficiency? Can the next White House issue waivers for fuel standards?

Is there any 'R' governors want to take the lead in the next presidential election and refuse the waivers for education? Anyone gonna point out that the debt deal that was just passed will be treated the same in a few years - waivers and exceptions, and no debt savings? /rant...

[PhilosopherStone1000]

Zero sympathy. She lied and played the race card when people questioned the rise in test scores (don’t have the cite but something like): “You all just don’t think Black kids can learn!”

And all the while she was knowingly gaming the system.

At least Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton are honest race-baiters.

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She and her regrets should be in jail.