Several parents of students sent home early from a school trip to Scotland are sorry for their children's conduct, the school's principal says.

Two dozen students flew back to Atlanta six days early for drinking alcohol while on the trip, and most of them are ashamed of their behavior, said Lisa Stueve, principal of North Springs Charter High.

"The majority of parents who have called me have apologized for the actions of their children and say the students are sorry," Stueve said. She declined to give details of specific conversations.

This was the second time students from the high school had been invited to perform at the three-week Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The event is a competition that includes arts such as music, acting and dance.

North Springs' performing arts students received rave reviews for their performance of "Urinetown" at the 2006 festival.

Disciplinary actions for the students sent home early are pending, Stueve said.

An investigation is ongoing, said Susan Hale, Fulton County Schools' spokeswoman.

Stueve said she does not have any information about where the drinking took place or how students obtained alcohol. She said she expects to know more once all of the chaperones are back.

The group from North Springs traveled to Scotland with the American High School Theatre Festival, which runs in conjunction with the Fringe Festival. Students signed contracts that clearly laid out the penalty for drinking on the trip even if students were 18, the legal age for drinking according to British law.

Stueve said a small group of students were caught drinking between Sunday night and very early Monday morning. By the time chaperones placed a call to her Monday afternoon, 24 students had been identified: 14 recent graduates, seven seniors, two juniors and a sophomore. The graduates had worked on the production during their senior year.

By Wednesday, the implicated students and one chaperone had arrived back in Atlanta. Nine chaperones remained in Scotland, Hale said.

Hale said no taxpayer money was spent on the trip or getting the students home earlier than scheduled.

The trip was financed through donations, grants and performances the group put on during the year. The group was able to raise a lot of that money in June when it put on "Bat Boy" for two nights at the Alliance Theatre on the Hertz Stage. The trip costs totaled more than $290,000, which covered moving the "Bat Boy" set and other expenses, school officials said. Approximately $100,000 was obtained through donations from local business, grants and performances.