DISD Grade Changing Investigation of SMU Freshman Keith Frazier

OFFICE OF
INTERNAL AUDIT
INVESTIGATIONS
2909 North Buckner Blvd., Dallas, TX 75228
Post Office Box 181509, Dallas, TX 75218
Independent
Dallas D
School
District
REPORT OF INVESTIGATION
Case Number: 11246, 11633, 11634, 11635

I information and should not be released without the approval of the Chief Internal Auditor only.

HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL
Mike Miles
Superintendent of Schools
INTERNAL AUDIT INVESTIGATIONS
2909 North Buckner Blvd., Dallas, TX 75228
Post Office Box 181509, Dallas, TX 75218
Independent .
Dallas D
School
District
RESTRICTED DISSEMINATION This entire report contains confidential work product
information and should not be released without the approval of the Chief Internal Auditor.
Mike Miles
Superintendent of Schools
Independent
Dallas D
School
District
HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL
Table of Contents
Executive Summary ' 4
Background .. ............ .... ... .. ...... .................................. ...... ....... ....... _ .... .. ..... .. ....................................... 5
Allegation ........... ...... ........ .............................. ....... .... ..... ..... ........... ....... .............. ....... .. ... .. .... ... ... 5
Employee Status ......... ....... ... .... ... ... ............................................................................................. 5
Extent And Results Of Investigation .. .. .... ............ ... ........... ........ ................................................. ..... 6
Referral To Outside Agency ... ....... .................................. .... ....... ...... ............. ........... ... ..... ...... .. ...... 33
Explanations And Defenses Offered ........... ........... .. ... ......... ................ ...... ............ ............ .......... .. 33
Relevant Policies, Procedures, And Statutes . ............................................................................... 38
Conclusions ... .. ...... ................. ............................................................................................ ............ 44
JONES
Earl .
24940
11246
Internal Audit Investigations
SMITH
Llewellyn
18142
11633
DANIELS
Toby
19702
11634
Executive Summary
This investigation substantiated that:
KING
Demarco
51121
11635
1. Former Dallas lSD Teacher Assistant, Demarco KING of Kimball High School,
improperly contacted a teacher at Kimball High School in an effort to have student
- I 'UJ Physics class grades mod and increased for NCAA eligibility
purposes. KING also altered stud Dallas lSD Grade Validation Report
when the teacher declined to e. This created a fraudulent report
card that was forwarded to
2. Toby DANIELS, Teacher Assistant Kimball High School, improperly contaCted a
teacher to have - . 7 . grades changed for NCAA eligibility. DA!'JIELS also
improperly contacted other campus teachers. DANIELS failed to r ~ r t to' campus
administrators that Demarco KING was attempting to get student ........ grades
changed. The investigation also substantiated that DANIELS failed to aafiere to his
assigned Title I duties and falsified his semi-annual Title I certification documents.
3. Llewellyn SMITH, Assistant Principal Kimball High School, failed to maintain
adequate management control and oversight of Kimball High School's attendance
documents and retention procedures in order to administer the District's attendance
policies, procedures and the campus attendance committee functions.
4. Earl JONES, Principal Kimball High School, failed to maintain adequate management
control and oversight of the campus' document management retention procedures in
order to administer the District's grade reporting policies and procedures, the
District's attendance policies and procedures and the campus attendance committee
functions. Principal JONES failed to adequately maintain management control,
oversight and acceptable policies and procedures relating to assigned personnel.
Principal JONES also falsified Teacher Assistant DANIELS semi-annual Title I
funding certification documents.
This Report of Investigation is the opinion of Internal Audit Investigations of the Dallas
Independent School District and is based upon evidence from its investigation of this matter.
HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL
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Allegation
JONES
Earl
24940
11246
SMITH
Llewellyn
18142
11633
DANIELS
Toby
19702
11634
Background
KING
Demarco
51121
11635
On June 3, 2013, Amiesha Brown, Executive Director Division I, Dallas ISO referred information to
Internal Audit Investigations (lA Investigations). Brown received the initial campus information from
Principal Earl JONES of Kimball High School. On June 7, 2013, lA Investigations opened an
investigation into the allegation that teacher assistants from Kimball Hi h School approached several
teachers at the campus in late May 2013, attempting to have student grades increased so
the NCAA Clearing House and receive a scholarship t ~
The allegation also stated that Principal JONES have allowed teacher
as Demarco Kl and Toby DANIELS to approach the teachers . It was also
alleged that the campus grade validation forms for I'll may have leading to the
falsification of jILL grades on m report card that was forwarded to
The allegation stated that teacher assistants Toby DANIELS and Monica Gray were paid with special
education funds and_ were not performing their assigned duties at the Kimball High School campus and
that the administrator was abusing the special education funds. (W1-1 , OPR Case Details Printout)
Employee Status
Earl JONES is employed as a Principal at J.F. Kimball High School and he has an "Educator Contract"
with the Dallas Independent School District for the 2013- 2014 school year that expires on June 4, 2014.
(W1-2. Earl JONES. Oracle Printout)
Llewellyn SMITH is employed as an Assistant Principal at J.F. Kimball High School and he has an
"Educator Contract" with the Dallas Independent School District for the 2013 - 2014 school year that
expires on June 4, 2014. (W1-3. Llewellyn SMITH, Oracle Printout)
Toby DANIELS is employed as a Teacher Assistant at J.F. Kimball High School. DANIELS is classified
aq an "at-will employee" of the District. (W1-4. Toby DANIELS, Oracle Printout)
Demarco KING was employed as a Teacher Assistant at J.F. Kimball High School. DANIELS was
classified as an "at-will employee" of the District and he terminated his employment with the District on
June 13,2013 (W1-5. Demarco KING. Oracle Printout)
Adro!nistrative Leave:
JONES SMITH DANIELS KING
Earl Llewellyn Toby Demarco
No No No No
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JONES
Earl
24940
11246
SMITH
Llewellyn
18142
11633
DANIELS
Toby
19702
11634
KING
Demarco
51121
11635
Extent And Results Of Investigation
On June 7, 2013, Internal Audit Investigation (lA Investigations) opened an investigation into the
allegations noted above.
lA conducted a preliminary review of District records. The review indicated
may not have attended classes the minimum number of days during the 2012-2013 school
year in order to be certified for graduation from Dallas Independent School District.
lA Investigations determined that teacher assistants Demarco KING and Toby DANIELS were involved
with campus athletics. KING was the soccer head coach at Kimball when he was employed with the
District. DANIELS was a volunteer assistant coach for the basketball program.
The scope of the investigation was to determine the following:
1. If --academic grades were falsified and forwarded to -
2. Whether any staff members were authorized to approach teachers on in
order to influence any grade changes for any subjects;
3. Determine if Principal JONES authorized any staff member to approach teachers on
behalf; .
4. Whether any staff member improperly pressured any teacher to cha rade;
5. Determine if any staff member falsified or caused the falsification official grades
on District
6. Determine if have been certified for graduation based on his class attendance;
and
7. Determine if teacher assistants paid with special education funds were performing duties
outside their funding agreement.
The following is a glossary of individuals interviewed/referenced during the course of this investigation:
Glossary of Individuals Interviewed
Name Title
Adenwala, Yousuf Teacher - Kimball High School
Ali, Hanan Higher Education Advisor - Education Is Freedom
Collins, Stacey Teacher- Kimball High School
Conder, Kyle Assistant Athletic Director of Compliance -
Southern Methodist University
DANIELS, Toby Teacher Assistant- Volunteer Basketball Coach -
Kimball High School
Dennis, Richard Teacher - Kimball High School
Hajl_nes, Tiffaney Data Controller- Kimball High School
Johnson, Royce Teacher Assistant - Kimball High School Head
Basketball Coach
JONES, Earl Principal- Kimball High School
Jones, Suzie Teacher- Special Education Department- Kimball
High School
HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL
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JONES
Earl
24940
11246
KING, Demarco
Maligi, Ulric
Porter, Patricia
Pruitt, Sharonda
Reagins, Iris
Reyna, Sylvia
Rhynes, Anida
SMITH, Llewellyn
Waters, Dionel
Webster, Mary
SMITH
Llewellyn
18142
11633
DANIELS
Toby
19702
11634
KING
Demarco
51121
11635
Teacher Assistant - Head Soccer Coach
Assistant Basketball Coach - Southern
University
Counselor- Kimball Hiqh School
Assistant Principal- Kimball Hiqh School
Methodist
Science Instructional Coach - Kimball High School
Chief. of School Leadership - Dallas lSD
Teacher- Kimball High School
Assistant Principal - Kimball Hiqh School
Assistant Principal - Kimball Hiqh School
Registrar - Kimball High School
BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON PRIOR INVESTIGATION:
On October 17, 2012, lA Investigations, then known as the Office of Professional Responsibi lity (OPR),
~ o r t of Investigation regarding Kimball High School basketball/athletic program and student
.._..,..The reports Executive Summary stated the following: (W1-1 1. OPR Report of Investigation,
No. 11351)
"The investigation of the Kimball High School basketball/athletic program has resulted in
this report and three others involving violations of District policies and UIL rules. In one
of the three other reports, Justin Owens, former assistant coach at Kimball High School ,
was found to have attempted to recruit a student from another district. In another of the
reports, Royce JOHNSON (Head Basketball Coach), EARL JONES (Principal) and Devon
Fortson, coach at Kimball High School were found to have falsi fied time and effort
certifications involvi ng federally funded programs because of time spent on athletic
programs ...
... Based on the evidence obtained in the October 17, 2012, investigation, the allegation
that student and other student/athletes were improperly recruited and
influenced to attend Kimball High School for athletic purposes was substantiated. The
evidence showed the following:
1.
2. 1 1 1 1 ~ "
, ... '
, . ..... ' ~ . .
told an Irving ISO coach that she had to
career.
3. Kimball High School athletic coaches and admi nistrators allowed the select basketball
league to practice in the Kimball gymnasium without obtaining the proper
contract/lease.
4. There was a history of the District 11-4A UIL District Executive Committee approving
transfers of students to the Dallas lSD and Kimball High School.
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JONES
Earl
24940
11246
SMITH
Llewellyn
18142
11633
DANIELS
Toby
19702
11634
KING
Demarco
51121
11635
5. Teachers did not consider I _ he
transferred to Kimball during the ast two weeks of the grading period."
In February 2008, the District requested an audit and review of the. District's existing policies and
procedures to determining students' eligibility for athletic competition and create "best practices" for
District employee rules, education, implementation and enforcement o.f the District's, policies and
procedures and state laws that governed interscholastic student-athletic eligibility. The audit determined
the following: (W1 -28, Report to Dallas lSD Review of Athletic Eligibility Matters, dated: January 28. 2009)
The first and foremost core principle is that of academic achievement. One of the district's stated
purposes is that secondary education is designed to prepare students for the next academic
level. Extracurricular participation is a privilege associated with academic achievement and not a
right that is independent of academics.
The report stressed compulsory attendance in accordance with the TEC attendance regulations
and the indicated students are expected to attend school each day that school is open for the
entire period the program of instruction is provided.
Had the full recommendations been adopted the recommendations could have prevented future
student athlete attendance and grade anomalies and would have helped to maintain an
atmosphere of vigilance and healthy competitive equity along with redeveloping the high
standards of tradition and success that have been the history of the Dallas lSD (DISD).
The recommendations included a) Compliance Infrastructure; b) Monitoring Systems; Forms and
Rules Education; c) Initial, Continuing and Transfer Eligibility Certification; and d) Investigations
and Reporting of Violations.
o Each documentation system (e.g., eligibility) should be reviewed to ensure that to the
extent possible, the system serves a functional purpose beyond monitoring; that there is
minimal duplication of information collected; and that required signatures specifically
reflect actual review or approval.
o The written description of each monitoring system should continue to be evaluated to
ensure that the description clearly delineates the process, documents the responsibilities
of various offices and individuals, and is understood and endorsed by the offices and
individuals involved.
o Each DISD athletics compliance form should include a specific statement and signatory
section that clearly sets forth the staff member's obligation to ensure that information
being provided is correct and affirms that the staff member understands that if he or she
does not submit truthful information, his/her employment with the DISD will be
jeopardized.
All phases of the eligibility-certification system should be subject to random sample testing on an
annual basis by an external compliance oversight group/individual (e.g., Compliance Committee
or internal auditors).
Recommended was each step in the process, from advising student-athletes to final certification
of eligibility and the process should have be evaluated annually to ensure that written
procedures/forms:
o accurately reflects current practice;
o take into account applicable DISD, UIL-TEA and school regulations;
o accurately document the decision-making process; and
o provided appropriate checks and balances.
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JONES
Earl
24940
11246
SMITH
Llewellyn
18142
11633
DANIELS
Toby
19702
11634
KING
Demarco
51121
11635
Recommended was written policy outlining the responsibility of both DISD and high school staff
members to report potential violations of DISD/UIL rules and describing the procedures by which
such information will be investigated should be included in the DISD's "Side By Side" Manual.
Recommended was the creation an Electronic Eligibility Audit System for Eligibility Decisions. and
Recommended was stricter enforcement and monitoring of attendance and transfer rules.
CURRENT INVESTIGATION
lA Investigations obtained numerous official District documents from Tiffaney Haynes, Data Controller at
Kimball High School, relating to the alleged falsification of student 9 g] grades. An analysis of
the official documents determined the following timeline:
Haynes stated in her statement that Dallas ISO. Grade Reporting Validation List, for teacher Dennis'
Physics Class, dated: May 25, 2013, was the original verification form printed on May 25, 2013. Haynes
stated that the report was provided to teacher Richard Dennis for verification of grades that had been
entered in GradeSpeed. GradeSpeed reflects for the six weeks and - for the final exam and a
2nd semester grade of for P . (W3-2. that Original DISD Grade Reoorting Validation List, for Mr.
Dennis' Phvsics Class. dated: May 25, 2013)
Haynes received the revised DISD Grade Reporting Validation List, for Mr. Dennis' Physics
Class, dated: May 25, 2013, and Haynes revised the Physics grades in the database to reflect
for the six weeks and ,._ for the final examjnation. Modification of Z grades resul ted in
the creation of falsified official report card for Jl . (W3-3. Altered DISD Grade Reporting Validation
List, for Mr. Dennis' Physics Class. dated: May 25. 2013)
Haynes printed the Dallas lSD Official Report Card fo: I ; dated: May 29, 2013, for Toby
DANIELS and the report card contained the falsified grades for Physics class reflecting- for
weeks, ... for the final exam and . the final semester grade. This report card was email ed to
J (W3-4. Dallas lSD Official Report Card for F. dated: May 29, 2013)
Haynes corrected 711 1 Dallas ISO Official report card on June 4, 2013 and the report card contained
the corrected grades of . for the six weeks and .. for the, final exam and a final 2nd semester grade
of 4 (W3-5. Corrected Dallas ISO Official Report Card for a I JOT dated: June 4. 2013)
Dionel Waters, Assistant Principal Kimball High School, was interviewed by lA Investigations concerning
student .-,gpp grades being changed on official District records. Waters provided a sworn
affidavit and his statement is quoted verbatim: (W2-1. Dione! Waters. Affidavit. dated: Auaust 5. 2013)
" A few days before the grade verification forms were due, I was informed of possible
grade changes to I !2 academic report by Mrs. Iris Reagins (Science Instructional
Coach). Mrs. Reagins informed me that I should be on the "look-out" for any changes to
grades in Physics for Mr. Dennis' class. Mrs. Reagins is the campus'
coach so when this information was presented to me I believed it
wholeheartedly.
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JONES
Earl
24940
11246
SMITH
Llewellyn
18142
11633
DANIELS
Toby
19702
' 11634
KING
Demarco
51121
11635
On the same day I spoke to the basketball athletic team, Coach Carlton Nelson (Athletic
Director), Coach Royce Johnson (Head Coach), and Toby DANIELS (Volunteer Asst.
Coach) and informed them that I was told of some possible grade changes to ..
report that may take place when the grade verification sheets are due. Coach
Royce Johnson informed me that he has told Toby DANIELS not to harass any teacher
about any grades for any basketball player. Coach Johnson also told me that all he was
concerned about was ... graduation status. As long as lllr;.was able to graduate the
grades that. received were .. I then informed the basketball staff that if they are aware
of any possible happen, to please stop them in advance. I was
fully aware of status and I didn't want anything to cause
suspicion to the school.
When the grade verification form was printed by Mrs. Tiffany Haynes on May 25, 2013 and
returned to her by the teachers, I went to her office to verify Mr. Dennis' grade verification
form. When I looked at the grade verification that I 17 grade for the final
six weeks was crossed out and changed to a There weren't any initials from the
teacher indicating that the chan.as valid and made by the instructor. After becoming
aware of the grade change of from an .or the final six weeks, I texted Mr. Earl
JONES (Principal) because he was off campus telling him that we need to talk about
possible invalid grade changes to the verification form as soon as possible. I then went to
Mr. Dennis and inquired about the grade change. I told Mr. Dennis that if he did make any
changes to the grades, he needs to show documented proof of F assignments that
would validate the -for the final six weeks. Mr. Dennis then informed me that he did
not make the the grade verification sheet, and the grade that was submitted is
the actual grade that.-earned. I then pulled Mr. Dennis into Mrs. Haynes' office and
showed him the grade verification form. When Mr. Dennis saw the grade verification form,
he quickly asserted that he did not make the changes. I asked him who made the changes
and he said he did not know. Mrs. Haynes informed me that Mr. Damarco KING was the
person who submitted the grade verification forms to her.
After meeting with Mr. Dennis in Mrs. Haynes' office, Mr. Dennis returned to class and I
waited for Mr. JONES to return to campus so that I could inform him of the situation and
determine what the next steps would be. Mr. JONES informed me that we had to gather all
of the individuals involved in the situation and sit down with them individually. After
sitting down with them, we would have them write a statement about what took place and I
would be responsible for collecting them and returning them to Mr. JONES.
The first interview conducted by Mr. JONES and I was with Mr. Dennis. Mr. Dennis verified
everything that he told me earlier in Mrs. Haynes' office. At the meeting, Mr. Dennis also
had his was able to verify the grades that._,. earned in the course and the
final grade of .-r. At the end of the interview Mr. Dennis wrote his statement and I turned
it in to Mr. JONES.
The second interview conducted by Mr. JONES and I was with Toby DANIELS. During this
interview Toby informed Mr. JONES and I that he was told to get card for-- to
send Toby said he went to Mrs. Haynes to get a report have a copy
of .. IIIIa grades. Toby then took the report card to Ms. Ali (Higher Education Advisor-
HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL
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JONES
Earl
24940
11246
SMITH
Llewellyn
18142
11633
DANIELS
Toby
19702
11634
KING
Demarco
51121
11635
Education is Freedom) for her to send it Toby indicated that he did not ask anyone
for permission to do this prior to retrieving the grades. He went ahead and got the report
card for .. The report that was submitted to.., had M 8 grade in Physics
Toby requested and received the report card prior to me catching the
grade change on the Mr. Dennis' grade verification form. At the end of the interview Toby
DANIELS wrote his statement in the Assistant Principal's and I turned it in to Mr.
JONES.
The t.hird interview conducted by Mr. JONES and I was with Ms. Hannan Ali. Ms. Ali
informed Mr. JONES and I that Toby got a report card from Mrs. Haynes and told her that .
... needed a copy of the report card. Ms. Ali told Mr. JONES and I that she sent an email
copy of the report card to the representative at- Mr. Jones then inquired about Ms.
Ali still having a copy of the email. She indicated that she did. I walked Ms. Ali down to
her office and she printed off a copy of the email that she sent to ] nith the report card
attached. (W6-1 ) I looked at the report card and the grade for Physics did reflect the--
I then took that document and turned it in to Mr. JONES. At this present moment I am not
aware of where the document is. I told Mr. JONES that those grades for Physics will look
susp1c1ous. I informed Ms. Ali that I need a statement from her to include in the file. I
have yet to receive the statement. From my understanding, Ms. Ali should still have a
copy of the email that was sent
The final interview conducted by Mr. JONES and I was with Mr. Damarco KING. Damarco
admitted to collecting grade verification sheets from teachers. The only specific teacher
that I am aware of is Mr. Dennis. Damarco then admitted to changing/crossing out grades
for .... Damarco informed Mr. JONES and I that he did this with the intention of going
back to those Ilk grades. Damarco admitted to changing the
grades for ... .l.Q. .. Damarco indicated that he calculated the grades and
would need a .... for the six weeks in order to be eligible for
At the end of the interview, Damarco KING wrote a statement
that I collected and turned in to Mr. JONES. Mr. KING has since resigned from the
District. Damarco KING served as a Special Education Teacher Assistant for Mr. Dennis'
Physics class.
Today I was given the opportunity to read Mrs. Haynes incident report. Based off the
document, there were procedures that were not followed correctly that allowed for this
incident to occur. First, per the incident report, teacher assistants (in addition to Damarco
KING) and a student helper were allowed to turn in grade verification forms to teachers.
This is no way acceptable or followed by protocol. As an administrator, I would have
never approved this to happen and this process was not known by me when it occurred.
Under no circumstance should teacher assistants or student helpers handle teacher grade
verification forms. Mrs. Haynes resulted in "short-cuts" that were not approved by
administration. The teacher assistants were not approved by administration to handle any
grade verification forms. This is against policy. All statements that I received were
turned in to Mr. JONES. On this day, I am surprised to know that OPR did not have my
affidavit in which I printed off and gave to Mr. Chiquita. I am unaware of where the other
supporting documents could be.
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JONES
Earl
24940
11246
SMITH
Llewell yn
18142
11633
DANIELS
Toby
19702
11634
KING
Demarco
51121
11635
Furthermore, I wanted to ensure that Kimball High School was in compliance with grade
procedures. Since coming to Kimball in February 2012, I learned of J[ &I
athletic statu and attendance problems. Taking into account absences and at times
when he was present at school, I knew the ...... would create
When I first arrived at Kimball in February 2012, I had to learn the roles and
responsibilities for each employee. According to his job code, Mr. Toby DANIELS is a
special education teacher assistant i n the FLS (functional learning skills) unit. On the day
in question, Toby was not where he belonged. Since my first day at Kimball , Toby used a
walkie-talkie and assisted in the hallway. I informed loby that this upcoming year
(2013-2014), he would not have a walkie-talkie and will be in the FLS unit 11m% of the
time."
lA Investigations interviewed Tiffaney Haynes, Data Controller from Kimball High School
S grades being changed on official District records. Ms. Haynes provided a sworn affidavit and
excerpts of her statement are quoted verbatim: (W3-1. Tiffaney Haynes. Affidavit with Attachments,
dated: Auaust 7. 2013)
" On about May 24, 2013 the senior grades for the si xth six weeks were exported from
GradeSpeed to Chancery. I came into work on that Saturday morning to run the Grade
Validation Reporting List to 'have it ready for the teachers on that Tuesday morning. On
May 28th I took the reports to the auditorium to pass out to the senior teachers to
complete and return as soon as possible. Not every teacher was present for the meeting
so I informed Ms. (Sharonda) Pruitt (Assistant Principal -Kimball High School) that I had a
number of teachers that had not received their report. - Ms-. Pruitt informed me to get a
couple of student helpers to assist but we only had one in the attendance office because
the helpers were seniors and they had graduation rehearsal that day. I went to the testing
coordinator to get the roster for the teachers that were testi ng and at the point Mr. KING
said he could assist with getting the reports to the teachers. I gave him the reports and he
took them around to the teachers. I went back to my desk and started working on the
corrections that I had and as time went on Mr. KING, Mr. DANIELS, student helper as well
as some of the teachers brought back of the completed reports.
On May 28th I received a correction for in Mr. A class on both the six
weeks and the exam grade. At that time I made the change based on what was provided
on the report into Chancery and initialed and dated the report. At this time I will provide
the original form to OPR. On May 29th Mr. KING asked me to print R PI report card
for Ms. Ali to send off to his school. I have initialed and dated the report card that I
provided for Mr. KING. (W3-1)
Mr. Dennis came to me and stated that he did not make any changes to 77.11} six
weeks nor exam grade as is was provided to me. I went in to Mr. JONES and advised him
that changes were provided on the validation report that Mr. Dennis did not make and at
that time Mr. JONES called myself, Ms. Porter, Mr. SMITH, Mr. Waters and Mr. Dennis into
his office. Mr. Dennis stated again that he did not make those changes and Mr. JONES
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JONES
Earl
24940
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Internal Audi t Investigations
SMITH
Llewellyn
18142
11633
DANIELS
Toby
19702
11634
KING
Demarco
51121
11635
asked that Mr. Dennis provide a copy of his grade book as well as the actual exam for
] . A change was also provided for -- from a blank grade to Mr.
JONES asked to see the actual exam for - Once Mr._ Dennis provided the exam he
real ized that it had not been graded. Mr. Waters graded . - exam in Mr. JONES offi ce
while we waited. At that time Mr. JONES asked how did I receive t he validation reports
and I informed him that Mr. KING, Mr. DANIELS, the student helper as well as some of the
teachers provided the reports to me. Mr. Waters graded the exam using the answer key
provided by Mr. Dennis. After Mr. Waters graded the exam Mr. Dennis made the
corrections on the validation report and initialed it for me to make the corrections in
Chancery. On May 29th I went into Chancery and ret urned the ori ginal grade i n Mr.
Dennis' Physic class for to an for the six weeks and ..,for the final exam
which made- 2Nsemester grade an I made the corrections in Chancery but did
not provide Mr. KING nor Ms. Ali with any copies fo1 II .
I on June 4, 2013, I printed a copy of actual final report card for Mr.
JONES and Ms. Brown (Division 1 Executive Director). I have provided the report card with
my initials and date for this statement. I have also provided the origi nal statement with my
initials and date that was provided to Mr. JONES.
On my previous campus myself and the other Data Controller emailed the following
documents to the teachers: Grade Validation Report List, Blank Grade Report and Grade
Proof List. Once the email when out to the teachers they had two options: 1. Print off the
page(s) that need attention, make the corrections, sign and date the forms and return the
documents to the data office in person or scan and email it back 2. Reply to that emai l
stating all correct, no changes. The only people allowed in the Data offi ce were DISD
employees no students or parents and the office door was closed at all times. Any time
that office was vacant that door would be locked. We did not place report cards nor
progress reports in the mailboxes, the teachers had to come in person to receive these
documents. Education Is Freedom (ElF) was located in the counselor' s office and
information that was needed for a student was monitored and came directly from them.
At my current campus I was instruct ed by Ms. Pruitt to place the same information in the
mailboxes and if it was something that needed immediat e attention have the student
helpers or teacher assistants to walk it through. ElF is located in a stand-alone office and
they are free to get and send information for students without going through the
counselor's office for monitoring.
At no time was I informed to grades to increase. grade point
average for college purposes.
I have also provided to OPR the unofficial transcript that was sent to jJ for I . &
by Mrs. Webster High School).
documents provided to_.
I have initialed the 1
5
T page of the
Mr. JONES also requested a copy of the validation report for every teacher that I b
4 had for the sixth six week(s). I am unaware if any other teachers were interviewed
regardi ng this matter. I have provided to OPR the original copies of the validation reports
that Mr. JONES requested."
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Investigator's Notes: The DISD Principal's Handbook of Administrative Procedures Student Information
Management states, 'The principal shall annually develop written documentation of his/her school's grade
entry and verification procedures." (W1-6. The DISD Princioal's Handbook of Administrative Procedures
Student Information Management. section 12-1)
IAjnvestigations interviewed Iris Reagins, Science Instructional Coach for Kimball High School, regarding
1 BC& 6 grades being changed on official District records. Reagins provided a sworn affidavit and
her statement is quoted verbatim: (W4-1. Iris Reaqins. Affidavit, dated: November 6. 2013)
" On or about May 21 or 22 2013, 1. I II 1111 stopped by my office to ask for
assistance with one of. papers.was working on for a class. Toby DANIELS came in
to speak with Royce Johnson concerning g grade in Physics class. Toby
DANIELS told - he was going to talk with Mr. Dennis about changing the
grade for . . . Royce Johnson instructed Toby DANIELS not to talk with Mr.
Dennis about changing the grade. Royce Johnson told needed to accept
responsibility for egrade because Mr. Dennis had an opportunity to work on a
project. Toby DANIELS then told Johnson that "I the grade will be changed." I did
not know if DANIELS was referring to Fl ,_ or when he said e-. I (sic)
it appeared that DANIELS was upset and he left the office.
On May 27th, I received a phone call from Mr. Dennis saying QANIELS was pressuring him
about changing the grade for T FIN Dennis said .. , had been given a project
to do and did not complete the project. He asked my thoughts about him changing the
grade. I told him that he should not change the grade because was a high profile
student and changing the grade could result in him losing his job. I also told him if he
changes the grade for one athlete the coaching staff would continue to ask you (to) the
change grades for other athletes. My recommendation to Mr. Dennis was not to change
the grade. At the end of the conversation Dennis told me he decided not to change the
grade.
On May 28th, I overheard DANIELS say that KING said "The grade would be changed one
way or the other." I knew by KING being an aide in Mr. Dennis' classroom he would have
access to the grades. I then spoke to Mr. Dennis asking him if KING had his password to
GradeSpeed and he told me no. If KING had his password, I wanted to advise Dennis to
change his password right then. After overhearing the conversation, I decided to speak
with Mr. Waters (Assistant Principal-Kimball High School) about a possible grade change
without the consent of g I r
Mr. Dennis later told me the grade had been changed on the verification sheets without
him changing the grade."
Investigator's Notes: Royce Johnson confirmed the above information provided by Ms. Reagins and
the information was documented in the exhibited memorandum. (W9,1. Rovce Johnson. Memorandum
of Teleohone Conversation. dated: November 8. 2013)
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lA Investigations interviewed Richard Dennis, Teacher Kimball High School, regarding
grades being changed on official District records. Dennis provided a sworn affidavit and excerpts of his
statement are quoted verbatim: (W5-1, Richard Dennis, Affidavit. dated: September 11, 2013)
"On or about Thursday, May 23, 2013
concern for.-. grades.
coach Toby DA approached me out of
choose not to the Physics semester
needed a -in my class in order to maintain
I responded that I cannot grade what 41
project. Coa indicated
an alternate assignment in lieu of the house project,
but has turned in all other assignments and still had some time to put together a
rough project as grades were due the next day (May 24, 2013)." ....
.. stayed after school that day and a project; however, he did not
take my advice to take the project home to complete and return the project the next day. I
awarded the project a grade of. out of fairness to other students and I will not award
anymore." . ...
.r ...... ,,:-<
. ... .. - -
. hed me again on or around Friday, Maw, 2013, expressing concern
now needed him to make an in my class and he asked if
cou rn in any work for the fifth or sixth week grade." .... " Coach Toby also called
me on my cellular telephone over the weekend expressing the same concerns." .. ..
" I told Coach Toby that I could not do anything fore, especially regarding the 5th six
weeks. Coach KING then texted me over the weekend wondering if Coach Toby had
contacted me and I replied that Coach Toby had, but I could not do anything ..
"On Tuesday, May 28, 2013, Coach KING handed me the grade validation proof sheet from
Ms. Haynes office. The only change I made on the validation form was to adjust ..,
:.._.grade for extra credit and assignment." .. ..
" On Wednesday,
ch
Mr. Waters called me to Ms. Haynes office to review
sheets. It was ' only then that I learned that-
grades had been changed."
Hanan Ali, Higher Education Advisor- Education Is Freedom, was interviewed by lA Investigations at the
Kimball High School campus regardi ng the report card she emailed to Ulric Maligi, Assistant Men's
Basketball Coach for Southern Methodist University (SMU). Ms. Ali stated she works for Education is
Freedom (ElF) as a Higher Education Advisor and was assigned to Kimball High School during the 2012
- 2013 school year and this is her 2nd year at the Kimball High School campus.
Ali stated she remembered--from the 201 - 2013 school year and she helped q 5
complete his SMU application form and also his essay for submission to the
university.
sometime in May 20J.3, Coac[l Maligi from her and about BP
._.grade and how his ._.could be QMJ f Ah told Coach Mahg1 that she would
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not be able to answer Maligi 's questions and she referred Maligi to Ms. Porter, ._,counselor. Ali
sometime in May 2013, Coach Maligi contacted her and requested a current report card
for She did not remember the exact date when she received the request from Coach
Maligi. Ali told Maligi that she was not able to obtain official school records and Mal igi would have to go
through the campus or the report card.
Ali said soon after her conversation with Coach Maligi, Toby DANIELS and Demarco KING came to her
office with a for - I D Ali advised she never told DANIELS or KING about the reports.
KING handed._ report card to Ali and she merely scanned and emailed the report card to Coach
Maligi. On August 6, 2013, Ali forwarded to OPR the email message and attachment (report card for
- that she sent to Coach Mal igi.
The email message to Coach Maligi was dated: May 29, 2013 and was sent at 10:25 a.m. The report
card fodTJIJPl Fwas printed on May 29, 2013, at 9:56 a.m.......I!J.e report card contained the 1st and 2nd
semester grades for- and the falsified grades for - in Richard Dennis' Physics class. The
falsified grades were listed as the final six weeks and a& for the final Physics examination;
with a final semester final grade Oflll However, Ali -stated she aware that .It report card
had been falsified. Al i stated she did notice the on._. Physics report card and she
questioned the validity of the actual grade. (W6-1. Hanan Ali, Memorandum of Interview with
attachments. dated: October 21 . 2013)
Investi gator's Notes: lA Investigations initially contacted Hanan Ali on August 6, 2013. On that date, Ali
forwarded to lA Investigations the email message and report that had been sent to Coach Maligi.
Kyle Conder, Assistant Athletic Director for compliance at Southern Methodist University (SMU) was
contacted by lA Investigations on August 15, 2013j ani It Investigations requested the assistance of
SMU into the investigation of the falsification ot- 2 Physics grades. lA Investigations emai led
to Conder specific questions relating to the request for assistance. (W1-15, lA Investigations,
Memorandum of Activity, Request for Assistance SMU)
It was not unti l October 4, 2013, that Conder responded to lA Investigations request for assistance and he
provided the following information to lA Investigations questions: (W7-2, Kyle Conder. Email. dated:
October 4. 2013)
lA Investigations Question: Before May 29, 2013, had lllllrt report card been provided to
SMU and did SMU staff evaluate the report card for eligibility purposes? Who at SMU requested
the report card and who evaluated the academic material when the university determined that
be a good student athlete for the basketball program? Were
Tctors -associated with that report card that required academic improvement
SMU Response f rom Conder: - high school t ranscr i pt was provided to SMU on
two occasions for revi ew in consideration of NCAA init ial -eligi bi lity regulations. SMU
received a transcript on or about 9/18/2012, and again on or about 4/3/2013. Ul ric Mal igi,
SMU Assistant Men's Basketball Coach, requested the trans_cript and provided it to Susan
Vollmerhausen, Director of Admissions & Eligi bi lity for SMU At hletics, for review. At the
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time of the transcri pt evaluations, - had the opportunity to meet NCAA initial-
el igibility standards."
lA Investigations Question: Who requested _,report card on or about on May 29th
(Maligi)?
SMU Response from Conder: " Maligi
lA Investigations Question: Who at Kimball High by SMU, (Kimball
coach, athletic coordinator, administrator, staff member)
SMU Response f rom Conder: " Maligi originally contacted Miss Ali for
because Miss Ali had identified and introduced herself to Mal igi as counselor . .
Subsequently, Maligi was informed by Miss Porter that she, not Miss was._.
counselor and that any future requests for transcripts should be addressed to her."
At any point did SMU request or suggest from Kimball staff the
possibil ity that could and/or how it could _be . d.,one etc.? When? (By
May 29th, the high school semester had ended and it was too late to - the grades.)
SMU Response from Conder: " No."
lA Investigations Quest ion: Were - grades in compliance with NCAA requirements on
or about May 23, 2013, before received the falsified report card from Kimball High
School on or about May 29th?
SMU Response from Conder: " At the aforementioned (9/1812012 and 41312013}
transcripts were provided to SMU, - had the opportunity to meet NCAA i nitial-
eligibility standards."
lA Investigations Question: Were the falsified grades used to qual ify - for university
and/or NCAA scholarship and enrollment purposes?
SMU Response from Conder: " No."
lA lnvesti
copy of
emailed an un
=-===.=.:. Did SMU receive from Kimball High School a revi sed or corrected
rades between May 29, 2013 and June 18, 2013? (Kimball High School
cial transcript to SMU with the correct scores on June 18th to coach Maligi.)
SMU Response from Conder: " SMU received official transcript on or about
July 1, 2013."
lA Investigations contacted Conder on October 9, 201 3 in order to clarify the information Conder provided
to lA Investigations and Conder provided the following information:
Conder stated that in or around May 201 3, SMU was in contact with the Kimball basketball
coach, Hanan Ali and Counselor Porter regardi ng._. high school core grade poi nt average (GPA)
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and indicated the -GPA to average--and a review of --ast known grades in
SMU' s possession indicated th GPA was ...... the required GPA for NCAA eligibility.
Conder said Maligi did not specify which coach Maligi contacted, but based on past experience, Conder
indicated Maligi would have contacted the head coach.
Conder indicated core classes included English, Math, Science and History. Mal igi told Conder that
Maligi did inquire if anything could be done that could PUMP' the GPA. Maligi never asked the coach or
anyone else to falsify any grades for ... Maligi did realize that the high school year was about to end
when he contacted the campus in late May 2013.
Conder stated that Mli received._. report card from Hanan Ali on May 29, 2013 and Maligi
noticed the grade of for Physics class, last semester grade and final test. Maligi told Conder that
Maligi did not forward the report card to SMU's Director of Admissions & Eligi bi lity for Athletics for review
because Maligi suspected that ... grade was not accurate.
Conder indi . at SMU received ...... official final high school transcript on July 1, 2013. Conder
stated that an class during the at National
a!}d obtained a grade Conder stated that the course did GPA
and d dl.L qualified for NCAA eligibility. (W?-1, Kyle Conder, Memorandum of Telephone
Conversation with Attachment. dated: October 9, 2013)
Investigator's Notes: The investigation was prolonged because /A Investigations requested the
assistance of SMU in order to determine the Kimball High School personnel contacted by SMU. lA
Investigations initially contacted SMU on August 15, 2013 and requested assistance. lA Investigations
contacted SMU again on September 10, 2013 and Mr. Conder stated he had not completed his inquiry.
Mr. Conder responded to lA Investigation request on October 4, 2013.
On October 18, 2013, lA Investigations contacted Demarco KING, former teacher assistant at Kimball
High School regarding the change of student for Physics in May 2013. KING
confirmed over the telephone that his full name was Demarco Elias Rashad Kl NG and he stated that he
was not living in the State of Texas and he would not be available for an interview with lA Investigations.
KING declined to consent to a telephonic interview without his attorney being present. lA Investigations
reviewed the written statement KING provided to Kimball administrators which stated the following: (W1 -
7, Demarco KING. Memorandum of Telephone Conversation with written statement, dated: October 18,
2013)

KING was calculating grades to see if student a.Je.s were eligible for the NCAA Clearing
House. He marked on the verification form with the intention of obtaining a new
verification form for Teacher Dennis. _
KING never intended to have grades changed for .. or ask Teacher Dennis to change
rade.
twas KING'S intention to make sure that all of the athletes were eligible for graduation, NCAA
eligible and school acceptance.
KING never asked a teacher to change any grades .
KING was using the verification form as a calculation sheet and KING forgot to get a new (clean)
verification form for Teacher Dennis, due to being distracted by other school issues.
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Investi gators Notes: KING's statement claiming he made calculations on the validation form was not
credible. A review of the Grade Verification Form (W3-3) does not contain any calculations. /A
Investigations conducted a search with Texas Education Agency ( TEA) and determined that Demarco
Elias Rashad KING held a Texas Educator Certificate for Educational Aide I that expires on December
31, 2017, (W1-8. TEA Educator Certificate for KING)
lA l n,vestigations interviewed Toby DANIELS, Teacher Assistant Kimball High School regarding ..
L grades bei ng changed on official District records. DANIELS verified that his name was Toby
Harrah DANIELS and he was certified with Texas Education Agency- (TEA) as an educational aide.
DANIELS provided a sworn statement and his statement is quoted verbatim: (W8-1, Toby DANIELS,
Affidavit. dated: October 10. 2013)
came to me in the end of May 2013 and told me6was concerned about
.from hool because had and had
.. .... further stated that did not know how
would be able to nments in Physics, English and Math. I went
the teachers of the subjects that If . and I asked the teachers the statl@st
' A 1 eing able to graduate. Mr. Dennis, W Physics teacher told me that if
would complete a project relating to building a house then Mr. Dennis JFPQ J ) would
. be alright in his class and Mr. Dennis did not tell me what the grade
would be if HE completed the project. I also spoke to Ms. '011 English
teacher about Ms. Rhynes told me that was er class because
...... .. l assignments. Ms. told me that needed
to complete - assignments and needed in class for - final
examination. I also spoke with Mr. Adenwal math teacher about II. status
the he told me also that_.. had not Mr. Adenwala told
me needed to and aneeded to .-.final
examination.
The teachers told me that they could help I beli eve I 3 was not
leting the missed

Rhynes told me t hat 2$113
!itaalnd she did not give - credit for an assignment. I asked Ms.
k:ould complete the assignment again and Ms. Rhynes said no. After that I
Coach KING, was the Physics substitute teacher and KING told me that r
eve!) Mr. Dennis came to Kimball in the_ _of 2013. Mr.
Dennis told me that _ [ was .... in the class tor !I [I II II I told
about the project and i not do it.j to Cl Mr. Dennis
not complete the project and Mr. Dennis said that _ needed to get with group.
!Jil hen told me that he didn't even know who the members of the group were. I again
told Mr. Dennis about what._ had said and Mr. Dennis told me that he would help-..
but he would.no.t do the.rk for rrs I never told. Mr. Dennis that JMioeeded to have
gr:QiH h&) or an -when I asked Mr. Dennis if db could do anything
to . YSI CS grade.
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My main concern was not df eligibility I just wanted to make sure that ....
was going to graduate from Kimball.
I was able to get.-. to graduate because I had contacted teachers and had
requested from the teachers, what .. could do to for graduation
from high school not for eligibility for I know it was n ace to help 4 J , but I
wanted to help I because I had been helped by an educator in my past.
Ms. Haynes gave me one validation report from Coach (Stacey) Collins (Teacher-Kimball
High School). Coach Collins told me that he made a mistake on d . 6 grade and that he
needed to make a correction. Collins told me that p 'did not
final examination and had not roject. Collins told me that iiiiihadflnally
test and ect and Collins now wanted to change -
grade. Collins chan and I returned to validation report to Ms.
Haynes. I have initialed and dated the validation report that I had provided to Mr. Collins. I
did not make any corrections or changes to any validation reports.
mother called me a few days later and told me that she needed a
transcript ASAP for-and that she had been trying to contact Ms. Potter or Coach
Johnson for the transcript. Coach Johnson said he did not want anything to do with4
because of what done in the past with his players. Coach Johnson was not
helpful in trying to get the transcript. I contacted Ms. Ali and she told me that I needed to
go to Ms. Haynes the data controller to obtai n the transcript. I then went to Ms. Haynes
and told Ms. Haynes that I had verbally obtained permission from Ms. 103 to obtain a
transcript for- in order to fax to Ms. Haynes provided me with 077 transcript
and I gave it to Ms. Ali so she could fax the document to
After I gave the transcript to Ms. Ali, I also contacted coach KING and because KING was
the only person at the campus that knew how to clear an athlete for the NCAA Clearing
House for NCAA eligibility. KING told me he knew how to (do) it and KING told me that he
would show how to enter the information on the Clearing House online. My only
interaction with KING was KING telling me that &Physics class and
when I asked KING about the NCAA Clearing House.
knew was ( F classes
ancte was n"r' IT If 1 I told coach Johnsoii'11lat we needed to get
on because was 12 11$. I did not falsify any grades on any of the
validation reports and I do not know who falsified any of the entries." ....
Investigator' s Notes: /A Investigations conducted a search with Texas Education Agency (TEA)
and determined that Toby Harrah DANIELS held a Texas Educator Certificate for Educational Aide I
that expires on May 31, 2015, (W1-12. TEA Educator Certificate for DANIELS)
lA Investigations interviewed Royce Johnson, Teacher Assistant Kimball High School and Head
Basketball Coach regarding J [ grades being changed on official District records. Johnson
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provided a sworn affidavit and his statement is quoted verbatim: (W9-2, Royce Johnson. Affidavit. dated:
October 10. 2013)
]. began recruiting junior year at Kimball. In mid-November 2012, I
received a questionnaire in preparation for our game in December on ESPN. It asked a
question regarding some of my recruited players and their college interests. I asked ....
to give me .top schools. When gave me-lists, this is when I saw that.was in
.top 7 schools.
In September 2012.,coaches, 1111111 z our campus on the
first day that NCAA coaches are allowed to view or open gym. After
my kids finished open gym, ill C mother was standing with the coaches and asked
could they use my office, because the coaches wanted to talk and show a video to her and
..
She asked me to sit in on the conversation. During this meeting I had no interaction
with tho r maches concerning
During the 2012 - 2013 school year, I had no conversation with any -coaches
concerning s; ,r IF grade point average at Kimball and a eligibility for NCAA
participation. During the 2012 - 2013 basketball season, ... mai ntained
academic eligibility the entire season.
In late November or early December of 2012, after .. received-SAT or ACT scores.
reported the scores to the [Will$ JJ 91& One of assistant
called me and said that their co pliance director said that with ...
scores and core grade point average qualified r NCAA athletics. He also said"'"fi'lat
... couldn't classes th sc ool year. This was the first time I was
aware that Bl could be his NCAA eligibility.
I never had a conversation with any coach from any university about how 4lllt could
improve ecore grade point average.
In May 2013 T..:_oANIELS and DeMarco KING never contacted me or shared anything
with me them that lllll5needed to increase e grade point average for
NCAA eligibility purposes. The first time I was made aware of the grade changes in Mr.
Dennis's Physics class, was when Earl JONES called me to his office in May 2013. When I
arrived in his office there were an office full of people, including Mr. SMITH, Mr. Waters,
Mrs. Haynes, and Ms. Porter. When I arrived, Mr. JONES asked me was I aware of a grade
ch:: being made for zr I 7 i n Mr. Dennis' s class. He also asked me was I aware
that .. needi ng higher grades to core grade point average.
After I responded "no", Mr. JONES called for Ms. Ali to come around to his office. Mr.
JONES asked me why I wasn't the guy that [ coaches were in contact about 37
grades. I told Mr. JONES that {I 't have a working relationship with the coaches at
and that they didn't rough me.
Mr. JONES asked me to get in contact with the coaches at iiJI'and find out why th
1
iirj i
in contact with Ms. Ali , and not in contact with Ms. Porter and me. When Coac
returned my call, he said that he had been i n contact with Ms. Porter and Ms. Al i. He also
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said that he thought that Ms. Ali was our athletic compliance person, because .. would
always tell him to check with Ms. Ali when it was concerning college requi rements. I told
Coach Maligi that I had been called in by my principal sayinf that Mr. Dennis had been
approached about ea receiving extra work in order to his grade point average.
Coach Maligi responded by saying that when Ms. Ali faxed him an unofficial transcript for
simply told her that he thought might these
grades. He said he asked her were these the final grades or was there a possibility of the
sco.res ch:gs. ing. He told me that he shared with Ms. eeded to
l F D!L! in his subjects to begin
I told Coach Maligi that the coaches from the Un of that
.. would be eligible as long as he i n any of his core classes
his senior In return Coach Maligi said that his compliance office said that ..
wou if his core grade point average didn't
Coach Maligi then told me that we need to have me come over and
sit down with all of the basketball coaches at SMU and fix that I am having
with the SMU program. He also said that if I was handling that this
would have never happened.
The next day I advised Mr. JONES of my conversation with Coach Maligi. After I shared
with him the informati on I received from Coach Maligi, he responded by saying that we
need to come up with a procedure for all college coaches when they report to our campus.
He (JONES) said that maybe we should have all of them check in with them Coach Nelson
when they arrive on campus.
lA Investigations interviewed Yousuf Adenwala, Teacher from Kimball High School regarding Keith
Frazier's grades being changed on official District records. Adenwala provided a sworn affidavit and his
statement is quoted verbati m: (W1 0-1, Yousuf Adenwala. Affidavit, dated: October 15, 2013)
was
twice to make up the assign
pre-calculus course. I initial
I then ch
.,to
.. . , ... __ ...__ ... . -.. . ,._. . .. ....
'" ..,. - -. ' J r I ...
I have reviewed the pre-calculus . validation form dated May 25, 2013, and I did make t he
grade change on the document and I did sign and date the fo.rm on May 28, 2013. I was
not pressured by.J&.... DANIELS to make any changes grade, I only made the
change because ... had made up his missing assignments. This is the 1
5
T time that I
have been asked about---grade for the end of the 2012- 2013 school year for the
pre-calculus class. "
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lA Investigations interviewed Stacey Collins, Teacher from Kimball High School regarding 1
grades being changed on official District records. Colli ns provided a sworn affidavit and his statement is
quoted verbatim: (W11 -1 . Stacey Collins. Affidavit dated: October 15. 2013)
"In May of last school year ]. r was in my class . was. due to .. .
I spoke with several occasions about &grades . that .would
complete said makeup work. Mr. DANIELS also came by and spoke with me. I inf ormed
Mr. DANIELS of I R situation. DANIELS did speak with me, however as a Coach myself
I already know the consequences for those kinds of actions. I told DANIELS
knows .. si.tuation and that.can make up due . L Mr. DANIELS spoke about
he did not ask me point blank his grades.
On 10/15/13 I reviewed the DISD Economics Validation List from 5/25/13 and all the
changes on the form were made by me. Every change is in my handwriting.
qn the date of the Final Exam .-.,turned assignments. I
.. came that if. did not complete the packet that- would fail. The makeup
assignments were
because of district policy. The d.ays _.missed would not

allow him to pass. . made .. Final and th;t Jpade made .graduation
possible. I di d not receive pressure from DANIELS to pass . As an educator, I would
never change or give false grades to improve the work of Athletes. I personally f eel that
you have to earn everything you receive. Today was the first time I had to discuss this
situation about D. F .''
lA Investigations interviewed Anicia Rhynes, Teacher from Kimball High School
grades being changed on official District records. Rhynes provided a sworn affidavit and her statement is
quoted verbatim: (W12-1. Anicia Rhynes. Affidavit. dated: October 15. 2013)
" I have reviewed the English val!dclti.o'n form on May 25, 2013. I verify that it is my hand
writing for grade changes on
up
On or about the 23 , Mr. ANIELS asked was missing any more assignments
and wh_at cantl do to make it up. I told him a . was still missing two assignment s even
after the 5 days of tutoring. After the tutoring sessions, two more assignments was due.
'Mrt.was PR 1 and didn't get to do them. When I entered the grade, e.score was
again. I inform $f this while_A.was.practicing f.or the march. -told
rli'EFfliat'IIPneeded a grade of a as gomg- I mformed .. that that
was ITFL however, - could showed up and completed the
assignments and I changed the validation form to reflect. I was not pressured in any way
to by Mr. DANIELS or anyone else to change grade."
lA Investigations interviewed Patricia Porter, Counselor for Kimball High School regarding
grades being changed on official District records. Porter provided a sworn affidavit and excerpts of her
statement are quoted verbatim: (W13-1. Patricia Porter. Affidavit. dated: October 23. 2013)
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" On or about May 29, 2013, Ms. Ali and Coach KING came to my office to ask if two passi ng
grades could be averaged to get a hlil average." .. .. Coach KING stated that .
needed to have a higher average for He asked me to call explain to him
that th-e d ecould not be averaged. That was the first time ever spoken to
Coach He had been speaking with Ms. Ali , because he was under the assumption that
Ms. Ali was is counselor. In speaki ng to coach he said that needed to
have a NCAA eligibility in the core courses. Coach KING stated to me during the
conservation my_ office that they were to lock in the first semester .at
-so that 1f coach at he would not be able to take_. w1th
him." ....
that he had a copy of I 1111 . grades that . had received f rom Ms.
Ali and wanted to know if those were correct. I expl ained to him that I had not seen-.,final
report card, he then asked if I could fax over to him a copy of. transcript. I took his fax
number but never faxed anything to him, because it is against District policy." ....

this had happened until it was presented in the meeting in Mr. JONES office. Mr. JONES
wanted to know if anyone was approached about changing ta grades or why they were
changed. I told Mr. JONES of the conservation that had taken place in my office with Ms. Ali
and Coach KING earlier that day." ....
Investigator's Notes: Porter was a subject to a previous investigation conducted by /A Investigations,
case No. 11332.
lA Investigations conducted a prel iminary review of 'OF 32 attendance report
contained I I rrs I absences which indicated th may not have
the minimum number of days (seat time) during the 2012 - 2013 school year in order to g uate from
Dallas Independent School District. The attendance report included atten ance dates from
January 23, 2013 to May 31, 2013. W1-9. DISD Individual Attendance Re art for dated
October 15, 2013)
lA Investigations interviewed Llewellyn SMITH, Assistant Principal f or Kimball High School regarding
yp 3 3 II.EF attendance and seat buy back deficiencies. Mr. SMITH was the campus administrator
responsible to oversee attendance and the attendance committee. Mr. SMITH provided a sworn affidavit
and his statement is quoted verbatim: (W14-1. Llewellyn SMITH. Affidavit with attachments. dated:
October 17. 2013)
" I am an employee of Dallas lSD and have been so for 19 years. I currently serve Dallas
lSD as an assist ant principal at Justin F. Kimball High School. I have been here for f our
years. The departments that I oversee are the mathemat ics department, athl etic
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department, attendance & truancy, safety and security as well as other responsibilit ies
expected of any admi nistrator.
As the assistant principal assigned to oversee attendance and attendance committee, we
hold meetings to make sure students are staying withi n the 90% percent rule. This rule
deals with the amount of ti me that students must be in class to gain credit. Once students
are i dentified through a credit intervention report, they are scheduled to meet with the
committee to review their attendance, and then sign a contract. The contract is what is
known as the principal 's plan. Students must be passing the class or classes in which
their attendance rate falls between 75% and 90% i n order to participate in t he principal' s
plan. On May 7, 2013 I 3 [ Fl!sr met with the attendance committee and was put on
such a plan. At the time that plan was written, .. owed .,ours of seat time. -.,ours
were to be completed by May 14, 2013. One credit recovery log has a documented time of
,hours in physics and is dated May 23, 2013. As of today October 17, 2013 the
aocumentation that is in my possession indicates that ... did not complete the required
ti meewas assigned. Going strictly by what I have, eshould not have been cleared for
buy-back time and thus credits would be jeopardized due to lack of attendance
(attendance for credit). Based on the information in my possession, it can' t be
determined if the student should have been certified for graduati on. As an assistant
principal at Kimball, I did not g i v ~ preferenti al treatment in regards to
attendance and. obligations.
Additionally, /A Investigation's review of .... & Attendance Reports determined that after
signed the buy-back contract, from 2013 until the last recorded attendance for
23, 2013, ....
On October 22, 2013, Teacher Richard Dennis indicated in an email message to lA Investigations tbat ~
did not have any documentation or tutoring records for 8 or any records relating to I (J
buy-back contract. {W5-2. Email Message from Richard Dennis. dated: October 22. 2013)
On October 23, 2013, Teacher Yousuf indicated in.a,n email message to lA Investigations that he did not
have any documentation or tutoring records for !.[ I 3 or any records relating to buy-back
contract. {W1 0-2. Email Message from Yousuf Adenwala. dated: October 23. 2013)
On October 23, 2013, Teacher Rhynes indicated in an emai l message to lA Investigations that she did
not have any documentation or tutoring records for _.. and was unaware a "Buy Back Contract"
existedfor ... (W12-2. Email Messaae from Anicia Rhynes. dated: October 23. 2013)
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On October 25, 2013, Teacher Stacey Coll ins indicated in an email message to lA Investigations that he
did not have any documentation for tutoring hours relating to buy-back contract and advised the
information would be held by the attendance personnel or the attendance committee. Colli ns did provide
lA Investigations copies of the work completed by
4
.)fTbut the documentation did not specify tutoring
hours that was related to the completed work. (W11 -2, Email Message with attachment from Stacey
Collins. dated: October 25. 2013)
Patricia Porter's (Counselor) sworn statement regarding U C attendance is quoted verbatim: (W13-1)
" On the day of graduation, (June 1, 2013) after the ceremony, each counselor was given a
list of students who were not to receive thei r diploma because they need to
time for absences. This list was given to us by Mary Webster, the registrar . ..
name was on the list of students that still needed to complete their seat time, therefore I
did not After all students had received their diplomas, each
counselor returned the unclaimed diplomas to Mrs. Webster.
Three days pri or to graduation the graduati ng seniors were certified and the list given to
Mrs. Webster to t ake downtown. At that time I was not aware of any reason not to certify
the 13 I L , nor was I aware of any procedure to not certify students that still needed
" buy back time.;'
The attendance committee is composed of Mr. SMITH, Mrs. Webster, Mrs. Bean, Mrs. Hill,
and other faculty members. The committee would meet to discuss students who had
excessive absences and were in danger of failing one or more courses. The committee
devised a plan to allow those students to "buy back' their time before school, after school
or during lunch. Students that were in danger had to meet with the attendance committee
to sign a contract stating that they would complete the number of required hours needed.
I knew that needed to complete some " buy back time" because I saw-.,
waiting to meet with the committee one morning approximately three weeks before the end
of the school year. The students that had to meet with the attendance committee were
sitting in a chai r in the hall waiting for their turn to receive their contract. The students
had t o document that they had completed thei r " buy back time" . Documentation included
having a staff/faculty member sign their contract/paper. The documentation as proof that
the " buy back time" had been completed did not go to the counselor; it went to either Mr.
SMITH, Mrs. Webster or someone on the attendance committee.
On October 23, 2013, Mary Webster, Registrar for Kimball High School responded to lA Investigation's
request for information relating to the attendance records for 75 , 7 . Webster stated that she did
not keep and was not responsible for the student attendance logs for tutoring time and attendance buy-
back. Webster stated she only compiled reports for the attendance committee. Webster stated she did
not distribute to counselors a list of students that owed time for attendance (buy-back) prior to graduation.
(W15-1. Email Message from Mary Webster. dated: October 23. 2013)
Investigator's Notes: Webster was a subject to a previous investigation conducted by /A Investigations,
case No. 11432.
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On October 24, 2013, lA Investigations contacted Pamela Bean, former Community Liaison for Kimball
High School regarding student . and the Student Attendance for Credit Contract signed by
rp on May 7, 2013 relating to the 90% rule. Ms. Bean was contacted because she was on the
attendance committee at Kimball and it was suggested by Assistant Principal SMITH and Registrar
Webster that Bean could have been in possession of the attendance logs fo1 J p when she served on
the attendance committee as the campus community liaison. Bean declined to undergo a telephonic
interview with lA Investigations. Pamela Bean is no longer an employee of the Dallas lSD. (W1-1 0,
Pamela Bean. Memorandum of Telephone Conversation. dated: October 24. 2013)
lA Investigations interviewed Dr. Sylvia Reyna, Chief of -S chool Leadership regarding Q j uy-back
contact. Dr. Reyna stated she questioned the student's certification for graduation and why the
student was certified for graduation. However, Dr. Reyna believed that once the diploma was conferred,
the District could not annul the diploma. Dr. Reyna stated she would have to research the issue.
Dr. Reyna stated the campus administrator had the overall responsibility for the campus. She said the
campus administrator had a lot of leeway in managing the principal's plan for the buy-back contracts,
however, if the administrator did not have the proper controls in place, Dr. Reyna believed that was a
management concern/deficiency. (W19-1 . Syl via Reyna, Memorandum of Interview, dated: November
12,2013)
ANALYSIS OF ADDITIONAL BUY-BACK CONTRACTS AND ATTENDANCE CREDIT RECOVERY
PROCEDURES FOR THE KIMBALL HIGH SCHOOL CAMPUS
When Assistant Principal SMITH provided lA Investigations 11 .... SMITH also
provided the sign-in sheet for the credit recovery meeting
identified as students needing to recover ._,..,.,_"m'"'
........
lA Investigations requested the student contracts and supporting documentation for those students in
order to determine if there were any anomal ies associated with the student recovery buy-back process at
the Kimball High School campus. The documentation was also requested in order to determine if the
students successfully completed the terms of their individual contracts. Assistant Principal SMITH had
incomplete records for the credit recovery process and he could not locate the individual contracts for the
above identified students. lA Investigations conducted an analysis of the records received from Assistant
Principal SMITH and determined the following:
Principal SMITH could not locate the buy-back contract for I mua,which
the actual hours required for credit. recovery and the subjects required for
com[n of the credit recovery process. On May 18, 2013, owed approximately ours
and minutes of seat-time. Tutoring logs indicated approximately hours
and inutes of seat-time. On May 18, 2013, a mandatory senior Saturday school
1
session and completed approxf1ately f hours and . minutes of actual seat-time. As of this date,
IllX owed approximately. hours of seat-time. However, Assistant Principa.LMITH
the credit for the Saturday school session crediting
lliilliiliutes seat-time for Saturday, May 18, 2013. (W1-17. lA lnvestiaations. Attendance Analvsis for
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lA Investigations reviewed
approximately
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would need to be accounted for. .contract should have been modified to a for
0
11"' .. I 2J.A111 7 rm. lA Investigations could not determine if 0 Sf 1 successfully
completed the credit recovery process, completed the seat-time in the appropriate subjects and whether
should have been certified for graduation. {W1-18. DISD Individual Attendance Report for FE,.

SMITH could not locate the buy-back contract and the attendance logs
incomplete. The buy-back would have provided the actual hours required for credit
recovery and the subjects required for successful completion of the credit recovery process. A 2nd
semester seat-time due log for May 2013 indicates that as owed approximately ... urs
minutes. Only one tutoring log was provided to lA Investigations indicating 6nours and . minutes of
seat time. As of May 18, 2013, . owed approximately . hours and 41\ninutes of seat-time;
however there was not documentation that supported the reduction of the hours. On May 18,
-,3 attended a mandatory senior Saturday school session and completed approximately#hours
. minutes of actual seat-time. Assistant i'?
1
ted . times the credit for the
Saturday school session crediting ours an inutes of seat-time for Saturday, May 18,
2013. (W1 -19. lA Investigations, Attendance Analysis fo1 , '
lA Investigations reviewed F DISD Individual Attendance Report and determined that z12Q
last recorded attendance at Kimball High School was on May 3, 2013. lA Investigations could not
determine if ]!i;; successfully completed the credit recovery process, completed the seat-time in the
appropriate subjects and ould have been certified for graduation. (W1-20. DISD Individual
!!IIIII._.. SMITH could not locate the buy-back contract for C and the attendance logs
- ""'"'"' be incomplete. The buy-back would have provided the actual hours required for credit
re>rn"'"' ' " and the subjects required for successful completion of the credit recovery process. As of May 7,
owed approximate! .,ours and. minutes. fl!t'P r tutoring log indicated that
pleted approximatelyi hours an. m1nutes of seat-time in various subjects. On May 18,
a mandatory senior Saturday school session and completed approximately 3
hours and nutes of actual seat-time. SMITH did not grant Sq additional seat-time. (W1 -21. lA
Investigations. Attendance Analysis for I I )
lA Investigations reviewed Ill j DISD Individual Attendance Report and determined
attended school on May 6, 2013 and did not another class at the campus until May 23, 2013. lA
Investigations not provided any documentation fof this anomaly and lA Investigations could not
determine if had additional unexcused absences, if ._ completed the seat-time in the
appropriate subj and whether eshould have been certified for graduation. (W1-22. DISD Individual
- SMITH could not locate the buy-back contract and there were not attendance
logs The buy-back would have provided the actual hours required for credit recovery and the
subjects required for successful completion of the credit recovery -process. As of May 7, 2013,
owed approximatelyf hours and- minutes. On May 18, 2013, attended a mandatory semor
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Saturday school session and completed approximately of actual seat-time.
SMITH granted- additional seat-time. (W1-23, lA Investigations. Attendance Analysis for
lA Investigations reviewed Alanis' DISD Individual Attendance Report and determined that -
attended school on May 2, 2013, May 8, 2013 and May 15, 2013. lA Investigations was not provided any
documentation for this anomaly and lA Investigations could not determine if - had additional
unexcused absences, if he completed the seat-time in the appropriate subjects and whether he should
have been certified for graduation. (W1-24. DISD Individual Attendance Report for
lA Investigation reviewed the Mandatory Saturday School for Excessive Absences/Credit logs for other
Kimball seniors and determined that several students may not have successfully completed the credit
recovery process even when the students received additional time for the Saturday School on May 18,
2013, Analysis below: (W1-25. lA Investigations. Mandatory School Analysis with Attachments)
May 18, 2013 Mandatory Saturday School for Excessive Absences/Credit
... ' "' ' "' ' - - - - -- - --- - - - --- Ho o- - 0 ---- - ---- - - - --- - - - ------ --- -- ---- 0 o
.Assistant Principal SMITH Determined the following Arbitrary credit ratios: _
Arrive a.m. and 6:30a.m.,_ ()f
.. a, m._ a_r:!_d _ ____ _
_ Arrive 7:01a. m. and stu_dent __ __ ___ _ _ __ _
- .. --- - .. . -- - ---- - ------------ - -
Above hours do not include any hours the students received for other seat time completed before or after school
__ _ _________ --- -- ------ -- - __ __ ... _____ _ ;_ _ - ---- - ----- -- ---- - --- ---- -
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On November 25, 2013, Assistant Principal Llewellyn Smith, Kimball High School was interviewed by lA
Investigations an.d he provided a sworn affidavit. lA Investigations completed an memorandum of
interview in order to clarify the information provided in SMITH's sworn statement concerning the buy-back
contract and attendance recovery process for the Kimball campus.
Assistant Principal SMITH acknowledged that he did not .have any of the contracts for any of the students
whose names appeared in the same sign-in sheet with r II for the credit recovery meeting on
May 7, 2013. SMITH indicated he had provided lA Investigations all of the documentation related to
students .I I; a IE ' . I an and I iii I 7 SMITH stated the
student buy-back contracts should have specified the hours the students needed to complete and fulfill
the terms the buy-back agreement. SMITH said the contracts should have identified the subjects that the
students were deficient in and the incomplete hours needed for buy-back of that particular subject.
SMITH acknowledged without the student contracts and complete supporting documentation, it was
impossible to determine if any of the students had successfully completed the terms to their buy-back
contracts.
SMITH reviewed the Attendance Report for student and acknowledged the unexcused
absences - ns accumulated after he signed his buy-back contract would probably need to be
accounted for and the lack of documentation could not established if all of--unexcused
absences had been satisfactory addressed.
SMITH acknowledged that the extra credit factors of, 3 times and 2 times the credit, for actual hours
completed on the last scheduled mandatory senior Saturday school for May 18, 2013, was arbitrary
established by him and the attendance review committee. Smith stated the credit factor was established
because he and the attendance committee knew that some of the students would not successfully
complete the requic:ed buy-back time unless the students were given an arbitrary incentive, because
some of the students were so far behind in completing the credit recovery process.
lA Investigations presented to SMITH an analysis relating to several students that indicated the students
owed a significant number of buy-back hours and even if the students received extra credit for attending
the final mandatory Saturday school on May 18th, several students would still owe buy-back time. SMITH
acknowledged that additional student logs would need to be located to account for the missing hours.
(W1 -25)
SMITH stated that once students completed clearance of books, uniforms, fees, attendance, etc., a final
clearance form was generated that would clear the student for certification for graduation. SMITH said
the final clearance form(s) for senior students relating to attendance and the credit recovery process
could not be located.
Assistant Principal SMITH never mentioned whether any academic goals and objective (learning
activities) were required for the credit recovery process. SMITH acknowledged the additional
management controls needed to be implemented at Kimball High School to effectively document and
manage the attendance committee and the credit recovery process. (W1-26. Memorandum of Interview.
Conducted with Assistant Princioal SMITH. dated: November 25. 2013)
Investigator's Notes: Texas Education Code 25.092. Minimum Attendance for Class Credit, states a
student may be given credit if the student completes a plan approved by the principal that provides for the
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student to meet the instructional requirements of the class. The board of trustees is required to adopt
policies establishing ways for students to make up work or regain credit lost because of absences. A
district may establish ways to make up work or regain credit that are workable in consideration of the
circumstances. The section does not require students to spend a certain amount of time in a "Saturday
school" or other educational setting equal to time missed during the regular school hours. However. the
district should be prepared with other options that give the student a reasonable opportunity to make up
work or regain credit even under challenging circumstances, including excessive absences that occur late
in the school year. Assistant Principal SMITH did not have sufficient management controls in place to
effectively manage the process and he failed to maintain adequate documentation that could justify and
support any management decision made relating to the Kimball campus buy-back plan or any credit
recovery procedures.
The credit recovery process for Kimball High School states:
"4. In order to participate in the credit recovery program, students must be current with all
assignments, have attended all classes at least 75% of the time classes have been offered, be
current with all assigned work and have all passing grades for each class. " Frazier was not
current and was not passing core subjects per teacher testimony".
9. Students may also recover credit upon completion of a project assigned by the teacher of the
class in which credit has been denied. The project must be commensurate to the number of
absences and a deadline will be given for completion of the project." (W1-27. Kimball High School
Credit Recovery Process)
TOBY DANIELS AND SPECIAL FUNDING POSITION INVESTIGATION:
The final allegation in this investigation stated that certain teacher assistants paid with special education,
Title I, funds were not performing their assigned duties at the Kimball campus and that the administrators
were abusing the special education funds.
lA Investigations contacted Jordan Roberts, Director from Grants Management regarding the Title I
special education funding criteria for Kimball High School teacher assistants Toby DANIELS, Demarco
KING and Monica Gray. Roberts responded that KING and Gray were paid with District general funds
from account "199" and only DANIELS was subject to compliance with Title I funding. Roberts provided
DANIELS Semi-Annual Certifications for the school years 2011 - 2012 and 2012 - 2013. A review of
DANIELS semi-annual certifications indicated that DANIELS certified that 100% of his job duties were
rel ated to activities which were in compliance with his funding agreement. Additionally there were no
adjustments to the certifications indicating that DANIELS had spent time on other duties not dedicated to
his Title I funding agreement. Principal JONES signed the documents as DANIELS supervisor certifying
that DANIELS complied with the Title I funding agreement without any adjustments. (W16-1 . Jordan
Roberts. Email Messaae and DANIELS Semi-Annual Certifications for the school years 2011 - 2012 and
2012- 2013. dated: Auaust 12. 2013)
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Dionel Waters (Assistant Principal ) sworn statement job assignment is quoted

" When I first arrived at Kimball in February 2012, I had to learn the roles and
responsibilities for each employee. According to his job code, Mr. Toby DANIELS is a
special education teacher assistant in the FLS (functional learning skills) unit. On the day
in question, Toby was not where he belonged. Since my first day at Kimball , Toby used a
walkie-tal kie and assisted in the hallway. I informed Toby that this upcomi ng school year
(2013-2014), he would not have a walkie-talkie and will be in the FLS unit 100% of the
time."
lA Investigations interviewed Suzie Jones, Teacher for Functional Living Skills (FLS) at Kimball High
School regarding DANIELS assignment in the special education department. Suzie Jones provided a
sworn affidavit and her statement is quoted verbatim: (W17-1. Suzie Jones. Affidavit. dated: October 15.
2013)
" I've worked with Toby DANIELS for the last t hree years and he has been my teacher
assistant.
During the 2011-2012 school year during the fall semester he was assigned a student to do
one-on-one work based learning, but after the student transferred in Jan. 2012 he
continued with the work based learning class for the remainder of the school year.
During the 2012-201 3 school year I recommended that Mr. DANIELS be in my unit to assist
me with the FLS unit. During that time he would be in the unit about 50% of the time. I
bel ieve Mr. DANIELS was assigned other duties by administration such as hall duties,
work based learning, special education bus duty for the other time in the instruction ti mes
that he was away from my FLS unit.
When Mr. DANIELS was assigned to me there would be several problems with him being in
the unit. He would be away from his assignment many times and would not be available to
assist me in the FLS unit. He had a walkie-talkie and he would leave the unit many times
as if he was being called for another assignment s. He had me assume that he was being
called away for other duties. I had asked him to turn off the walkie-talkie during
instruction ti me, but he would only lower the volume on the walkie-talkie. This would
occur a lot during instruction t ime. Mr. DANIELS would always tell me he was assisting i n
the hall or there was always a reason why he was not in the classroom. I advised
Assistant Princi pal Waters about my concerns relating to Mr. DANIELS and Mr. Waters
would have a discussion with Mr. DANIELS as to why he was not assisting or completing
his job assignment as a t eacher assistant for the special education unit FLS. Mr. DANIELS
was moved from my unit i n late f all 2012 and then Mr. Gray was assigned as my teacher
assistant."
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Referral To Outside Agency.
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The Dallas lSD may wish to consider forwarding a copy of this Report of Investigation to the TEA
Educator Standards and Certification Legal Division for any action they deem appropriate.
The District's of Management may wish to forward this Report of Investigation to the
Dallas lSD Pollee and Secunty Servrces Department for any action they deem appropriate.
Explanations And Defenses Offered
Demarco KING is no longer a District employee and he would not consent to undergo an interview with
lA Investigations.
On October 29, 2013, lA Investigations interviewed Pri ncipal Earl JONES regarding all of the allegations
identified in this report. Principal JONES provided a sworn affidavit and his statement is quoted verbatim:
(W18-1 . Earl JONES, Affidavit with Attachments, dated: October 29. 2013) Also attached to Principal
JONES sworn affidavit are statements JONES provided to senior administrators.
INVESTIGATION:
"In the midst of preparing for the grade process Ms. Haynes was communicating with the
teachers to pick up their validation reports for verification. We had our regular Kimball
Symposium where Ms. Haynes was allowed to issue val idation forms to the teachers.
These would have been to teachers who had not picked up thei r forms from her. The
deadline to complete this work was at hand, and she needed to ensure all teachers had
thei r information.
Those teachers who were not at the meeting or had not picked up their reports; t rying to
meet deadlines, Ms. Haynes had t hem delivered to them using the assist ance of teacher
assist ants and monitors. Ms. Haynes did not ask me if she could use the assistant s to
help her, but considering the timelines I would have supported her in getting the
documents out, including getting assistance or calling the teachers down specifically.
The duties and responsibilities of teacher assi stants are to provide support for the
teachers and students to reach goals that have been established. They are under the
direction of the teacher and are not considered teachers or employees of record. Mr.
DANIELS was out of his scope of responsibilities when he approached teachers about the
status of j [ _ & This is carried out by the c-oach or between teachers. Mr. KING,
while being a head coach, his conversation around : . was not in his scope of
responsibility, as.-. was not one of his athletes.
My conversation with Mr. KING after learning of the document being altered was about
why? Mr. KING shared with us that he simply wanted to average
scores would be with particular changes. I shared with him (KING) that he had made
changes on a legal document, and it looks as though these were only grades changes, not
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calculations. I asked why he had not used scratch paper to make these calculations. He
(KING) shared that he felt there could be new validation forms issued, so he wrote on
these. I shared with him that it looks as though, from what we had in front of us, he made
grade changes and the document was a legal document. This does not look good, and
there would be consequences around this. Neither Mr. KING nor Mr. DANIELS was
authorized to go from teacher to teacher to seek grade adjustments. This is something
they took on themselves.
The data controller Ms. Haynes shared with me that the grades were caught before they
were sent forward in Chancery for finalization. She indicated to me that she would be
going back to each individual teacher and has them verify any changes. This would
happen before she would submit for final verification and grade reports. Unfortunately
the preliminary report card was sent to reflecting the grade changes. In
communicating with Dr. Reyna, she directed me not to follow up and contact 3 [that she
would have that done.
The process for attendance verification lies with the teacher. The attendance committee
meets to address attendance issues and truancy as well. Mr. SMITH my assistant
principal is the administrator who provides leadership for this committee. There are other
members who have certain duties and responsibilities. The specific procedures of this
committee are to ~ g r s s of the attendance of students. All of the
documentation f o r ~ has not been located as of yet. Based upon the
documents provided, it remains unclear whether or not completed his
contract for his buy back hours. The process for record keeping and retaining documents
will need to be addressed so that the tracking of students can be cross-referenced.
Moving forward this committee will need to track the more habitual students more closely.
Perhaps have status reports generated on a weekly basis. Identify the actual record
keeper, and designate a secure area to retain records. This will help when there are
changes in the membership of the committee, and would make the records accessible to
anyone choosi ng to view them. There should not be multiple places to hold or retai n
records. Based on the information provided on the attendance report o r ~ W
additional class periods would need to be accounted for through the teacher or the
attendance committee."
On November 11, 2013, Pri nci pal JONES advised via an email message that the campus did not have
any other documents relating to I buy-back contract other than what had been previously
provided to lA. (W18-2, Email .message from Earl Jones. dated: November 11. 2013)
TOBY DANIELS TITLE I FUNDED POSITION:
"Mr. DANIELS had a schedule to follow for his duties as Special Education teacher
assistant. His schedule required him to be out of the original classroom from time to time.
His duties and responsibiliti es reflected him serving students with special needs. From
time to time Mr. DANIELS may have veered from his schedule, or he took too long to
return from a required assignment. It would be difficult to make adjustments to his
certification form as to how much time he may have been doing other duties. Mr.
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DANIELS had been counseled with about following his schedule. He no longer carries a
radio, and his schedule is far more specific. His schedule last year probably allowed too
much flexibility in it, thus giving Mr. DANIELS opportunity to be unaccounted for. With
that his semi-annual certification forms could have been adjusted to reflect the various
schedule times out of the classroom. This year his schedule is very precise, without the
numerous opportunities to venture from the classroom and his required duties. It is being
monitored by the assistant principal assigned to special education.
Ms. Monica Gray, who is currently a full time teacher, was a teacher assistant last year,
but was under 199 funding. This allowed more flexibility in her schedule and duties
assigned to the needs to the campus .
JONES acknowledged but declined to include in his sworn
based on the information obtained by /A Investigations that
to gra.. Principal JONES did not
necessarily know how, necessary, the graduation status of col.J!d b Principal
Jones said he was aware of the Superintendent's Directive, dated: August 30, 2013, relating to
Federal Funded Positions. Principal JONES also reviewed DANIELS semi-annual certification
forms for the school years 2011 - 2012 and 2012 - 2013. Principal JONES acknowledged that
adjustments should have been made on the certification forms to account for the hours during
the instructional day when DANIELS was not in compliance with his position that was funded with
Title I funds. Principal JONES declined to record the above acknowledgements in his sworn
affidavit because JONES stated he had been through this before with OPR. The
Superintendent's Directive and DANIELS Title I semi-annual certification forms are attached to
this memorandum (W1-13. Earl JONES. Memorandum of Interview with attachments) The
memorandum was contemporaneously written during Principal JONES interview on October 29,
JONES certified for graduation the Kimball High School senior class to include
May 29, 2013 (W1-14 . 2013 Kimball Senior 2013 Certified List. dated: May 29. 2013)
Toby DANIELS sworn affidavit articulated his defense regarding his special education position and his
statement is quoted verbatim: (W8-1)
" I am a special education teacher assistant and during the 2012 - 2013 school year I spent
100% of my time in the classroom or equivalent to the classroom with my students. I have
reviewed the semi-annual certifications forms for the 2012 - 2013 school year and the
information on the document is correct, I did spend 100% of my hours in the classroom. I
did not spend any time outside of the classroom or the classroom equivalent which
includes the one-on-one work based program. Ms. Suzy Jones had a problem with me
because I had the walkie-talkie in the classroom not because I was not physically in the
classroom. Mr. Waters told me last school year that I was not going to be issued a walkie-
talkie in the 2013-2014 school years because I guess they hired a new hall monitor. Last
school year there was no fulltime hall monitor in the new wing and I did not serve as the
hall monitor in the new wing or any other wing/hallway on the campus during instruction
time. I have reviewed, initialed and dated the semi certification forms that were presented
to me by OPR."
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Assistant Principal SMITH provided a response to whether student K I should have been certified for
graduation. SMITH added the following to his sworn affidavit that is quoted verbatim: (W14-1)
"Based on the information in my possession, it can't be determined if the
I As an assistant principal at Kimball,
give treatment in regards to attendance and his obligations."
SMITH's RESPONSE TO THE ANALYSIS OF THE ADDITIONAL BUY-BACK CONTRACTS AND
ATIENDANCE CREDIT RECOVERY PROCEDURES FOR THE CAMPUS
Assistant Principal SMITH was interviewed on November 25, 2013 regarding the campus buy-back
process and the attendance credit recovery procedures for the campus. SMITH provided and sworn
affidavit and his statement is quoted verbatim: (W14-4. Llewellyn SMITH. Affidavit. dated: November 25.
2013)
"The departments that I work with include mathematics, attendance and truancy, athletics,
foundations, safety and security, custodial, and food services.
As the assistant principal assigned to oversee attendance and lead the attendance
committee one of our major charges is to monitor the attendance of students keeping
them in compliance with the 90% rule which basically states that students must be in
attendance 90% of the time a class is offered to receive credit in a class. When student's
fall below 90% attendance they are identified through .excessive absence and credit
intervention reports (from these reports the amount of seat time is figured) and scheduled
to meet with members of the attendance committee to be placed on what is commonly
referred to as a Principal's Plan which reads as such: When a student's attendance drops
below 90 percent but remains at least at 75 percent of the days the class is offered and
earns a passing grade, the student may earn credit for the class by completing a plan
approved by the principal that provides for the student to meet the instructional
requirements of the class.
Our 2012-2013 Plan Follows:
1. Each three weeks, Attendance office personnel will submit an excessive
absence/credit intervention report (9-22absences per course/per semester)
to the appropriate attendance committee personnel.
2. In order to participate in the credit recovery program, students must be .
current with all assignments, have attended all classes at least 75% of the
time classes have been offered, be current with all assigned work and have
all passing grades for each class.
3. Attendance Committee Personnel will figure the amount of recovery time
owed and issue mandatory tutoring/credit recovery forms to students with
9 to 22 absences per course. Students may recover hours, one hour per
hour missed, by attending tutoring before/after school or Saturday school.
4. A list of all students in the warning stages (4-8 absences) or recovering
credit is generated and posted outside of the attendance office.
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5. Teachers will maintain a tutoring log which will be turned in to thei r
appraiser.
6. Students must return the Mandatory Tutoring/Credit Recovery form to the
Community Liaison in the Parent Center within three days of the end of the
semester.
7. Students may also recover credit upon completion of a project assigned by
the teacher of the class in which credit has been denied. The project must
be commensurate to the number of absences and a deadline will be given
for completion of the project.
8. Failure to complete the credit recovery hours or the designated projects
will result in the continued denial of credit.
9. Parents/ Students I Representative may appeal the decision of the
Attendance Review Committee. The request shall be in writing to the
Superintendent or designee and must be filed within seven days of the
response or, if no response is received, within seven days of the response
deadline.
Under 25.092, a district may establish ways to make up work or regain credit that are
workable in consideration of the circumstances. The section does not require that
students spend a certain amount of time in a "Saturday school" or other educational
setting equal to time missed during regular school hours. The district should be prepared
with other options that give the student a reasonable opportunity to make up work or
regain credit even under challenging circumstances, including excessive absences that
occur late in the school year. Additionally, this law is not intended to penalize students
for not attending a class before the student was enrolled in the class. Students, i ncluding
migrant students or transfer students, who could not have attended a class before
enrollment should not have the days of class that occurred before their enrollment
counted against them for purposes of "the 90 percent rule" . As with any other student, to
receive credit a student who enrolls after instruction for the year or semester has begun is
required to demonstrate academic achievement and proficiency of the subject matter as
required under 28.021 and 19 T.A.C. 74.26.
This plan has served as our plan for the past three years and to my knowledge can be
altered or individually tailored to specific students extenuating circumstances/needs with
attendance committee approval.
On the day of May 7, 2013 members of the attendance committee were scheduled to meet
with several high priority seniors.to place them on a plan. The students were . ,,.._,
II UIIE I . IB t-)1', . .. . and ' 7 n a 2 I &. As reference
earlier, the plan called for them tp make up allotted time by attending before or after
school tutorials and/or Saturday School. The hours that these students needed at that
time ranged from 3 to 36 hours. Documentation that we are able to gather indicate that
most students completed a reasonable amount of time aided by our last Saturday School
for seniors held on May 18, 2013 from (6am- 12pm) in which several students times were
tripled (an incentive agreed on by the attendance committee for students that arrived
between 6am-6:30am) or doubled (students arriving between 6:31am-7: 00 am) since this
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was the last Saturday school to make up time. Saturday school sign in sheets show that
all students met with on May 7, 2013 attended except IT I a
Students needing additional time after the final Saturday School were not allowed to
attend Senior Activities (i.e. Senior Picnic etc.) or arrive to school late prior to graduation.
They instead were required to come to school to recover necessary time. Clearance
records for all students (books, uniforms, fees, attendance, etc.) are then generated for
final clearance. I have searched for documents pertaining to final clearance for attendance
and to this point have been unsuccessful in my attempts. The Community Liaison served
as the primary record keeper/manager of all documentation pertaining to attendance buy
back/credit recovery and truancy and at this time that documentation has not been
found."
Relevant Policies, Procedures, And Statutes.
Dallas lSD Policy- EMPLOYEE STANDARDS OF CONDUCT DH {LOCAL)
All District employees shall perform their duties in accordance with state and federal law, District policy,
and ethical standards for professional educators. [See DH (EXHIBIT)]
All District personnel shall recognize and respect the rights of students, parents, other employees, and
members of the community and shall work cooperatively with others to serve the best interests of the
District.
VIOLATIONS OF STANDARDS OF CONDUCT:
Employees shall comply with the standards of conduct set out in this policy and with any other pol icies,
regulations, and guidelines that impose duties, requirements, or standards attendant to their status as
District employees. Violation of any policies, regulations, and guidelines may result in disciplinary action,
a report to SBEC, and/or termination of employment. [See DH (LEGAL), DCD, and DF series]
EMPLOYEE'S DUTY TO REPORT:
Any employee who knows or has reason to know of or suspects an occurrence of fraud,
misappropriation, or financial impropriety shall immediately notify one or more of the following: The Office
of Professional Responsibility (OPR) using the District's Fraud Hotline at (800) 530-1608, The Police and
Security Department, or The employee's supervisor. [See CM(LOCAL) and CHE(LOCAL) and
CHE(LOCAL) (REGULATION)] An employee who suspects his or her supervisor of fraud,
misappropriation, or financial impropriety should report such matters to OPR. Any fraud reports received
by a supervisor or the Police and Security Department shall immediately be reported to OPR.
EMPLOYEE' S DUTIES DURING AN INVESTIGATION:
During an investigation, an employee shall:
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4. Cooperate with the investigative process as follows:
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a. Throughout the course of an official District administrative investigation or inquiry, every Distri ct
employee has an affirmative duty to provide all relevant and factual in-formation about matters
inquired. Employees failing to cooperate with the investigation shall receive a directive from an
administrator to cooperate. The employee's failure to comply with the administrator's directive
constitutes "insubordination," a violation that will be grounds for disciplinary action up to and
including termination. [See DCD and DF series]
b. When directed by an administrator or a District investigator, an employee shall submit an
administrative statement. Intentional falsification, misstatement, or the concealment of a material
fact in connection with an administrative investigation shall be deemed as "providi ng untruthful
statements" and shall be grounds for disciplinary action up to and including termination.
Dallas ISO Pol icy- EMPLOYEE STANDARDS OF CONDUCT DH {EXHIBIT)
The Texas educator shall comply with standard practices and ethical conduct toward students,
professional colleagues, school officials, parents, and members of the community and shall safeguard
academic freedom. The Texas educator, in maintaining the dignity of the profession, shall respect and
obey the law, demonstrate personal integrity, and exemplify honesty. The Texas educator, in
exemplifying ethical relations with colleagues, shall extend just and equitable treatment to all members of
the profession. The Texas educator, in accepting a position of public trust, shall measure success by the
progress of each student toward realization of his or her potential as an effective citizen. The Texas
educator, in fulfilling responsibilities in the community, shall cooperate with parents and others to improve
the public schools of the community. 19 TAG 247.1
1. Professional Ethical Conduct, Practices, and Performance
Standard 1.1. The educator shall not intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly engage in deceptive practices
regarding official policies of the District, educational institution, educator preparation program, the Texas
Education Agency, or the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) and its certification process.
Standard 1.6. The educator shall not falsify records, or direct or coerce others to do so.
Standard 1. 7. The educator shall com ply with state regulations, written local Board policies, and other
state and federal laws.
Dallas ISO Policy- FISCAL MANAGEMENT GOALS AND OBJECTIVES FINANCIAL ETHICS - CAA
(LOCAL)
Section I General Provisions:
All Trustees, employees, vendors, contractors, consultants, volunteers, and any other parties who are
involved in the District's financial transactions shall act with integrity and diligence in duties involving the
District's fiscal resources.
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REPORTS:
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Any person who suspects fraud or financial impropriety in the District shall immediately report the
suspicion directly to the chief administrator of the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR), to the
District's Fraud Hotline, to the Pol ice and Security Department, or to his or her supervisor. An employee
who suspects his or her supervisor of fraud or impropriety should report such matters to the OPR. Any
fraud reports received by a supervisor or the Police and Security Department shall immediately be
reported to the OPR.
Reports of suspected fraud or financial impropriety shall be treated as confidential to the extent permitted
by law. Limited disclosure may be necessary to complete a full investigation or to comply with law. All
employees involved in an investigation shall be advised to keep information about the investigation
confidential.
In the case of report of fraud or financial impropriety against a Board member, the Superintendent of
Schools shall consult with the Board President or the highest Board member not affected by the report
regarding the appropriate review procedure, which may include the appointment of a special ad hoc
committee.
In the case of report of fraud or financial impropriety g i n s ~ an employee, vendor, contractor, consultant,
volunteer, and/or any other party involved in the District's financial transactions, the Superintendent of
Schools or designee shall refer the matter for investigation directly to the chief administrator or a
designee of the OPR.
Dallas lSD Policy - ATTENDANCE FOR CREDIT - FEC (LOCAL)
ATTENDANCE COMMITTEES:
Each school shall have an attendance committee appointed by the principal in accordance with legal
requirements for efficient implementation of Education Code 25.092.
PARENTAL NOTICE OF EXCESSIVE ABSENCES:
A student and the student's parent or guardian shall be given written notice prior to and at such time
when a student's attendance in any class drops below 90 percent of the days the class is offered.
METHODS FOR REGAINING CREDIT:
When a student's attendance drops below 90 but remains at least at 75 percent of the days the class is
offered and earns a passing grade, the student may earn credit for the class by completing a plan
approved by the principal that provides for the student to meet the instructional requirements of the class.
The Superintendent of Schools or designee shall develop guidelines for the principal's plan.
If the student fails to successfully complete the principal's plan or when a student's attendance drops
below 75 percent of the days the class is offered and earns a passing grade, the student, parent, or
representative, may request award of credit by submitting a written petition to the attendance committee.
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FILING PETITIONS:
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The petition may be filed immediately but no later than 30 days after the last day of the first semester or
the last day of the school year of the second semester for secondary schools, and the last day of the
school year for elementary schools, for which credit is lost for lack of attendance.
The attendance committee shall review the records of all students whose attendance drops below 90
percent of the days the class is offered, whether or not a petition is filed.
Students who have lost credit because of excessive absences may regain credit by fulfilling the
requirements established by the principal 's plan or the attendance committee.
LOSS OF CREDIT FOR LACK OF ATTENDANCE:
Students with excessive absences that are not excused by the attendance committee will be given the
grade earned, but will not be awarded credit. The earned grade will be shown with an asterisk(*)
denoting that no credit is given. However, students with excessive absences may regain the lost credit
by complying with specific conditions imposed by the attendance committee, on a case-by-case basis.
[See below]
ALL UNEXCUSED ABSENCES:
The attendance committee shall impose one or a combination of one or more of the alternative learning
activities listed below for a student to receive credit lost because of excessive unexcused absences.
Completion of class and homework assignments for days of absence and earning a passing grade are
required. The attendance committee may require the student to:
1. Satisfy time-on-task requirements before and/or after school;
2. Complete additional assignments, as specified by the attendance committee or teacher;
3. Attend tutorial sessions as scheduled;
4. Attend Saturday classes;
5. Attend evening classes; and
6. Complete independent study projects, as specified by the attendance committee or teacher.
At a minimum, time attending one or more of the optional programs should equal the number of hours the
student needs to make up [see EIA(LOCAL)]. In all cases, the student must also earn a passing grade in
order to recei ve credit.
Dallas lSD Policy- ATTENDANCE FOR CREDIT - FEC (REGULATION)
SECONDARY:
The parent shall be notified by the school after the student has missed five percent of the days any class
is offered in a semester. The purpose of this written notification is to make the parent aware that the
student has missed several classes and may be in jeopardy of losing credit for the semester course if he
or she misses ten percent of the days the class is offered. If the student continues to miss class, the
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school shall notify the parents, after the student has missed ten percent of the days the class is offered,
that the student has lost credit for the course for the semester. The parent may file a petition to appeal
the loss of credit to the attendance committee.
The school will make every effort to schedule appeals conferences at a convenient time for the parent.
PRINCIPAL' S PLAN FOR REGAINING CREDIT:
When a student's attendance drops below 90 percent but remains at least at 75 percent of the days the
class is offered and earns a passing grade, the student may earn credit for the class by completing a plan
approved by the principal that provides for the student to meet the instructional requirements of the class.
IMPOSING CONDITIONS FOR AWARDING CREDIT:
The principal's plan shall include alternate learning activities that the students must successfully
complete within a designated time to receive credit lost because of excessive absences. Upon
completion of the alternate learning activities, t he principal shall make a f inal determination to reinstate
credit or uphold the denial of credit for any course or courses for which alternate learning activities were
assigned.
The principal shall document all assignments and decisions in writing as follows:
1. All absences shall be considered in determining whether a student has attended the required
percentage of days. If makeup work is completed, absences for religious holy days, required
court appearances, and health care appointments shall be considered days of attendance for
this purpose. [See FEB]
2. The principal shall consider whether or not the student has completed assignments,
mastered the essential knowledge and skills, and maintained passing grades in the course or
subject.
3. The student or parent shall be given an opportunity to present any information to the principal
about the absences and to discuss ways to earn or regain credit.
4. The principal's plan shall impose one or a combination of one or more of the following
suggested alternative learning activities to meet the instructional requirements of the class.
The principal may require the student to:
a. Participate in an academic probation plan;
b. Participate in alternative learning programs to regain credit;
c. Complete additional assignments, as specified by the principal or teacher;
d. Attend tutorial sessions as scheduled;
e. Attend Saturday classes;
f. Participate in a mentoring program;
g. Obtain credit by examination;
h. Attend evening classes; and/or
i. Complete independent projects, as specified by the principal or teacher.
In all cases, the student must have earned a passing grade in order to receive credit.
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Dallas lSD PRINCIPAL'S HANDBOOK OF ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES 2010 - 2011
Section 10- Compulsory School Attendance and Enforcement
Attendance Committee:
The principal shall establish an attendance committee with a majority of its members being teachers
including a campus employee assigned as chairperson. [FEC (LOCAL) and Texas Education Code
25.092] The attendance committee shall review the records of all students whose attendance drops
below 90 percent of the days the class is offered, whether or not a petition is filed. Students who have
lost credit because of excessive absences may regain credit by fulfilling the requirements established by
the principal's plan or the attendance committee [FEC (LOCAL)]. The attendance committee shall
develop a plan to ensure early identification and recommendations for students with potential credit loss
due to excessive absences.
The attendance committee shall have regular scheduled meetings (secondary schools a minimum of
regul ar, scheduled bi-weekly meetings and all elementary and magnet middle schools a minimum of one
scheduled meeting each six-week). All members shall be trained in district and campus attendance
policies and truancy enforcement procedures. The attendance committee shall maintain agendas, sign-in
sheets and record the outcome of all attendance and hearing actions and appeals. Scheduled meetings
shall be posted in the attendance office with the campus process for initiating an appeal and the process
for submitting a student for committee review.
Documentation:
Campus administrators shall implement all necessary procedures to ensure that accurate attendance
record keeping is maintained. The principal or designee shall provide all currently and all late enrollees
with a copy of the Student Handbook, Campus Attendance Plan, and State Compulsory Attendance Law
warni ng notice upon enrollment.
Section 12 - Grade Entry and Verification Procedures
The principal shall annually develop written documentation of his/her school's grade entry and verification
procedures. The grade reporti ng procedures document shall include the activity date, the activity
description, the title of the person responsible for the activity, and the name of the person responsible for
the grade. The District's grade change form shall be used. The form shall be used as documentation and
placed on file for reference during the school year.
The principal shall ensure that each person responsible for a grade entry and/or verification procedure is
informed of his/her responsibilities and attends appropriate training sessions provided by school staff,
School Leadership and Administrative Services, Campus and Administrative Support, and/or the
Learning Community Office.
The principal or his/her professional level designee shall review grade reporting procedures with all
school staff involved in the grade reporting process prior to the end of the first grade reporting cycle and
periodically throughout the school year prior to the end of each grading cycle as necessary.
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Superintendent Directive- Federal Funded Positions- Dated: August 30, 2013
There has been a practice in the Dallas Independent School District (Dallas lSD) of having certain
campus employees, who are totally funded by federal dollars, work at least part of the school day as
extra-curricular coaches. This is a clear violation of the rules or the funding agreement. The Dallas lSD
is, once again, in the position of having to self-report legal violations to the proper authority and to repay
the state and federal government significant funds.
As of today, that practice stops. Persons funqed by federal dollars must spend 100% of their time during
the school day working per the terms of his or her funding agreement.
Anyone signing a certification form in which they attest that 100% or his or her time is spent during the
school day working per the terms of his or her funding agreement must be aware that they will be held
personally accountable if it turns out that such is NOT the case.
This is a vitally serious issue and will be dealt with accordingly. Again, be aware that individuals violating
the terms of this directive will be held personal accountable and may be subject to termination.
(Notation)
DECISION OF THE COMMISSIONER
Docket No. 040-R2-1099
Rayford Gibson v. Tatum Independent School District
(Excerpt) "With no mitigating circumstances, one must conclude that lying to cover one's tracks during an
investigation is per se grounds for termination."
Conclusions
The investigation substantiated that former Dallas lSD employee, Demarco KING of Kimball High School
improperly contacted teacher Richard Dennis in an effort to have Dennis mod and increase the
academic grade for student which would have for the
NCAA Clearing Hous.e and eligible for KING
was a teacher assistant at the campus assigned to assist teacher Richard ennis. When Dennis
declined to modify ,. 71& grade, KING altered II :1 r-- Dallas lSD Grade Validation Report. The
alteration of the report caused Dallas lSD to be falsified on an official Dallas lSD
report card that was forwarded KING's actions were in violation of
Dallas ISO Policies - Employee s of Conduct DH (LOCAL) and Employee Standards of Conduct
DH (EXHIBIT).
The investigation substantiated that Toby DANIELS, Teacher Assistant Kimball High School , improperly
contacted teacher Richard Dennis and pressured Denn increase 7 HJ academic
grade for the Physics class, which would have made DANIELS also made
improper contact with other campus teachers in a'llilffort to increase the academic grades for Ill p
DANI ELS knew Demarco KING was going to alter Physics grade and DANIELS failed to report
KING's intentions to ca_mpus administrators. The investigation also substantiated that DANIELS failed to
. .
HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL
44 of 52
JONES
Earl
24940
11246
SMITH
Llewellyn
181 42
11633
DANIELS
Toby
19702
11634
KING
Demarco
51121
11635
adhere to his assigned Title I duties and DANIELS falsified his semi-annual Title I certification funding
documents claiming that he spent 100% of his time during the school day working per the terms of his
funding agreement. DANI ELS was not truthful when he denied pressuring any teacher to increase
grade. DANIELS was not truthful when he stated he did not know who changed ... ! j
grade. DANIELS was not truthful when he said he spent 100% of his time during the school day
g per the terms of his funding agreement. DANIELS actions were in violation of Dallas l SD Policies
- Employee Standards of Conduct DH(LOCAL); Employee Standards of Conduct DH(EXHIBIT); Fiscal
Management Goals and Objective Financial Ethics CAA (LOCAL) and the Dall as lSD Superintendent's
Directive- Federal Funded Positions, dated: August 30, 2013.
The investigation substantiated that Llewellyn SMITH, Assistant Principal Kimball High School, failed to
maintain adequate management controls, oversight, and maintain acceptable document
management/retention procedures in order to administer the District's attendance policies and procedures
and the campus attendance committee functions. Assistant Principal SMITH did not have sufficient
management controls in place to effectively manage the credit recovery process and he failed to maintain
adequate documentation that could justify and support any management decision made relating to the
Kimball campus buy-back plan or credit recovery procedures. SMITH's actions were in violation of
Dallas lSD Policies- Employee Standards of Conduct DH (LOCAL); Employee Standards of Conduct DH
(EXHI BIT); Attendance for Credit- FEC (LOCAL); Attendance for Cr.edit - FEC (Regulation); and Dallas
lSD Principal's Handbook of Administrative Procedures 2010- 2011 .
The investigation substantiated that Earl JONES, Principal Kimball High School , failed to maintain
adequate management controls, oversight, and maintain acceptable document management/retention
procedures in order to administer the District's grade reporting policies and procedures; the District's
attendance policies and procedures and the campus attendance committee functions. Principal JONES
failed to adequately maintain management control, oversight and acceptable pol icies and procedures on
assigned personnel which provided the opportunity for KING to falsify Ill grades and provided
the opportunity for Toby DANIELS to make improper contact with teachers and pressure at least
one teacher (Dennis) into . Jl academic grades for student -..,for NCAA eligibility purposes.
Principal JONES also fail ed to ma1ntain adequate management controls over DANIELS which allowed
DANIELS not to adhere to his assigned Title I duties. Principal JONES falsified DANELS semi-annual
Title I funding documents claiming that DANIELS spent 100% of his time during the school day working
per the terms of his funding agreement. Principal JONES actions were in violation of Dallas ISO Policies
- Employee Standards of Conduct DH(LOCAL); Employee Standards of Conduct DH(EXHIBIT);
Attendance for Credit - FEC (LOCAL); Attendance for Credit - FEC (Regulation); and Dallas lSD
Principal's Handbook of Administrative Procedures 2010-2011 and the Dallas lSD Superintendent's
Directive- Federal Funded Positions, dated: August 30, 2013.
lA INVESTIGATIONS RECOMMENDATIONS: The District may wish to determine the validity of student
other seniors at the Kimball campus. Based on the record keeping at the
campus, insufficient academic criteria for the credit recovery process and the arbitrary seat-time ratio
given to senior students, the Internal Audit Department will be auditi ng the District's compulsory school
and enforcement procedures and practices for all District high schools.
Internal Audit Investigations understands that it is not our function to recommend what personnel actions,
if any, should be taken, and have not done so, leaving such latter determinations for the Human Capital
Management and Legal Services Department.
HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL
45 of 52
JONES
Earl
24940
11246
Gilbert Chiquita, Inspector
REfiORT OF INVESTIGATION
SMITH
Llewellyn
18142
11633
DANIELS
Toby
19702
11634
Dallas Independent School District
Forwarded:
Norman R. Epstein
Director
Dallas Independent School District
KING
Demarco
51121
11 635
HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL
46 of 52

DISD Grade Changing Investigation of SMU Freshman Keith Frazier

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DISD Grade Changing Investigation of SMU Freshman Keith Frazier

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because of district policy. The d.ays _.missed would not

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