Gwinnett County high school student cheating inquiry grows
The number of students at Gwinnett County’s Mill Creek High School being investigated for cheating has increased.
The school’s principal wrote in a letter posted on its website Tuesday that 60 students were under investigation. By that afternoon, district officials said 83 students had been identified as possibly participating in the cheating. On Friday, officials said 190 students were under investigation.
Mill Creek has nearly 3,800 students, the second-largest enrollment in the Gwinnett district.
Teachers noticed similarities between work that was turned in by a number of students on a summer reading assignment due the third week of this school year and alerted administrators, school district communications director Sloan Roach said. Gwinnett’s school year began Aug. 8.
First-time violations of the school’s Honor Code include a minimum one-day suspension from school. Discipline may also include losing membership in school organizations and various academic honors.
Mill Creek High had 121 reported incidents of academic dishonesty during the 2015-16 school year, according to state education department records. That total was second statewide, state records show.
State records show a 4 percent increase in reported cases of academic dishonesty in Georgia's public schools, from 4,285 in the 2012-13 school year to 4,456 in the 2015-16 school year.
About the Author
Eric Stirgus joined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2001. He currently writes about higher education and has assisted in the newsroom’s COVID-19 vaccine coverage. Born and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y., Eric is active in the Atlanta Association of Black Journalists and the Education Writers Association and enjoys mentoring aspiring journalists.
