Kathy Augustine Statement to DeSoto ISD

8/6/2019 Kathy Augustine Statement to DeSoto ISD

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What angers me most of all is that professional educators

cheated students who, I know, were already making progress—

according to a full range of state and national indicators.

But after the shock . . . the sadness . . . and the anger, I've also

become increasingly grateful.

I appreciate the w ork of the governor of G eorgia and the special

investigators, who had the resources and the subpoena power to

conduct a more in-depth investigation. And even though I have

moved on, I am relieved to see that the new administration of

Atlanta Public Schools is taking swift and certain action.

Because the allegations are so egregious, how ever, I cannot

move on without looking back.

Let me assure you that in my 12 years of service in Atlanta, at no

time did I have any know ledge of widespread cheating on state

standardized tests in 2009 or any other year. And I want to be

clear that I was neither involved in—nor aware of—the kind of

behavior that's been uncove red.

I am and have always been supportive of any investigation that

would assist in assessing the functioning of our school district. I

have cooperated w ith the investigation, and have made myself

available at all times when requested. I have never knowingly



I'm a lifelong educator second , a mother first—and that's a

statistic Iwould never accept.

So countless professionals and I went to work—crisscrossing the

country to study proven education reform strategies, setting high

standards, employing research-based teaching practices, and

providing intensive professional deve lopment for teachers and

principals. As a result, student ach ievem ent began to rise. In

2010 and 2011, when state monitors and tighter testing protocols

were implemented, still, the significant gains in student

achievement over 1999 were apparent.

And when allegations of cheating first su rfaced, there were

several external investigations conducted , including that of the top

testing security firm in the nation (Caveon) and the nationally

known consulting firm of KPMG. W e also started a con fidential

hotline for employees to report suspicious behavior.

The reality is . . . that a fter a ll that w e did . . . it was still not

enough . For that, Iwill be forever reg retful. Nothing in my

experience prepared me for the possibility that professional

educators would cheat students.

It is my sincere hope that the difficult lessons learned in Atlanta

will be applied to school systems that have and are grappling w ith

cheating scandals all over this country, including Texas.



Here in DeSoto ISD, that means testing protocols must reflect air

tight, best-in-class security measures that include ethics training

across our schoo ls. The superintendent's responsibility is not

only to set high standards for all, but also to be vigilant in

monitoring the adherence to processes and procedures.

Testing and assessment are among the most important things we

do in public educa tion. Through assessments, we are able to

show our students and the world that they can com pete and besuccess ful in any environment. I know what our children can do.

No one has to cheat for them .

To the board of trustees, I thank you for this opportunity to

publicly address the allegations and report findings. From the

very first time w e m et, I have endeavored to be honest, open, andforthcom ing about the ongoing investigation, as we ll as Atlanta's

12 years of academic accomplishments according to national and

state measures.

Please know that I understand your need for thoughtful

deliberations about my appo intment. Accordingly, after mutual

consideration in light of the recent release of the CRCT

investigative report in Georgia, and more importantly, in

consideration of the interests of the DeSoto ISD students and

community, I will be taking paid leave effective July 12, 2011.



Again, thank you to everyone for your time today.

Kathy Augustine Statement to DeSoto ISD

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Transcript of Kathy Augustine Statement to DeSoto ISD