Lucio Vasquez / Houston Public Media
On the same day that felony charges against five teachers accused of illegally cheating to obtain their teaching licenses were announced, three of the five suspects made their first court appearances.
According to court documents, the defendants include Vincent Grayson, 57, Nicholas Newton, 35, LaShonda Roberts, 39, Guilford Mason, 51, and Darian Wilhite, 22. ) were each charged with two counts of engaging in organized criminal activity.
Grayson, a former boys’ basketball director and teacher at HISD’s Booker T. Washington High School, is also accused of being the organizer of the scheme. Newton was the assistant principal at Booker T. Washington High School. Roberts was the assistant principal at HISD’s Yates High School. Mason is the former director of the Houston Training and Education Center. Wilhite was an examiner at the TACTIX test center.
News of the teacher certification fraud allegations broke Monday when Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg announced at a press conference that her office had uncovered the scheme. At least 200 teachers in Texas are believed to have been fraudulently certified, Ogg said.
“A former coach who was applying to become a police officer in another part of Texas had a remorse and brought up a plan that was well known among teacher applicants seeking certification,” Ogg said Monday. said.
On Tuesday, a Harris County grand jury formally indicted five suspects, according to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office.
Teachers will pay $2,500 to have someone else take the certification exam, according to court documents. This certification is required for teaching in most counties in Texas, and you can usually take it as many times as you like before passing.
Grayson’s bail was set at $300,000 on Tuesday and he was later released on bail the same day. Bonds for Robert and Newton were each set at $200,000. Roberts was released on bail Wednesday, but Newton was still being held at the Harris County Jail as of Wednesday afternoon. The remaining two suspects have not yet been arrested, according to court documents.
It is unclear at this time how many other HISD teachers, if any, were involved or participated in the scheme. On Monday, HISD representatives said all teachers involved in the system would be fired.
“Educators who engage in this kind of behavior abdicate their responsibility to their students and staff and amount to a complete betrayal of the public’s trust,” HISD Director of Public Affairs and Communications Alexandra Elizondo said in a statement. “HISD will fully cooperate with the Texas Education Agency and state and local law enforcement agencies as the investigation progresses. All three of these employees have been arrested and will receive notice of immediate release from duty.” be.”
“Furthermore, if we learn that any teacher currently working for HISD has participated in this system or fraudulently passed a certification exam, we will take prompt action to terminate their employment with the district.”
