Two more teachers plead guilty in APS scandal
Two more teachers pleaded guilty Monday in the Atlanta Public Schools test-cheating case.
Shayla Smith, 32, a former teacher at Dobbs Elementary School, admitted erasing students’ wrong answers on the 2007 standardized tests and giving her students the correct answers on tests taken the next two years.
In exchange for her guilty plea and agreement to help the prosecution, the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office agreed to dismiss four felony charges against Smith. She pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor count of obstruction and was sentenced to a year on probation and ordered to perform 250 hours of community service and pay $3,000 in restitution.
Standing before Superior Court Judge Jerry Baxter, Smith apologized to her former students and their parents for what she had done, calling it “one of my biggest mistakes and regrets.”
Former Benteen Elementary School teacher Sheila Evans also entered a guilty plea as well to a misdemeanor charge of obstruction.
About the Author
Bill Rankin has been an AJC reporter for more than 30 years. His father, Jim Rankin, worked as an editor for the newspaper for 26 years, retiring in 1986. Bill has primarily covered the state’s court system, doing all he can do to keep the scales of justice on an even keel. Since 2015, he has been the host of the newspaper’s Breakdown podcast.
