Atlanta school district employees should be able to report possible wrongdoing without risking retaliation, Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Meria Carstarphen said at press conference Tuesday.
In recent weeks, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has reported on multiple instances of improper grading practices—including cases including pressure from principals to change grades; retaliation against those who balked; and supervisors allegedly ignoring or implicitly approving the signs of cheating.
In several cases, teachers and staff said they were punished for reporting the grade manipulation, but district investigators said those claims were justified in only a few cases.
“APS has to internalize that this behavior is unacceptable and that there will be consequences when people decide to behave in ways that hurt children,” Carstarphen said.
Carstarphen said the district plans to make changes to prevent further grading violations, including setting up an independent ethics hotline.
“We have our own hotline, but I feel like it’s not the same,” she said. “I want a whistleblower to feel like they can do what they need to do without retaliation.”
Are you a teacher or parent of a student affected by grade-changing at Atlanta Public Schools? Tell the Atlanta Journal-Constitution your story.
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