HOUSTON – A former Houston ISD assistant principal appeared in court Tuesday, accused of acting as a proxy test-taker in a complex scheme to cheat teacher certification exams, that reportedly generated over $1 million.
Nicholas Newton, 35, appeared in probable cause court early Tuesday morning, facing two charges of engaging in organized criminal activity.
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His bond was set at $100,000 for each charge, totaling $200,000, with conditions barring contact with any co-defendants.
BACKGROUND: 200 unqualified teachers certified in $1M Houston-based cheating scheme
Newton is one of five individuals charged in a large-scale teacher certification cheating scheme that allegedly generated over $1 million in fraudulent profits, according to Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg. The scheme spanned several years and involved various education officials, including Newton.
These are the suspects charged in the scheme:
- Vincent Grayson, 57, the head boys basketball coach at Booker T. Washington High School in Houston ISD for nearly 20 years. Grayson was charged as the organizer of the cheating scheme.
- Tywana Gilford Mason, 51, the former director/VA certifying official at the Houston Training and Education Center. Mason’s role as test proctor allowed her to keep the proxy scheme undetected.
- Nicholas Newton, 35, an assistant principal at Booker T. Washington High School in Houston ISD. Newton is alleged to have participated in the scheme as the proxy test-taker.
- Darian Nikole Wilhite, 22, a proctor at TACTIX who is alleged to have taken bribes to allow Newton to act as a testing proxy.
- LaShonda Roberts, 39, an assistant principal at Yates High School in Houston ISD. Roberts is charged with recruiting nearly 100 teachers to participate in the cheating scheme.
Additionally, Newton, Grayson and Roberts have been fired, HISD confirmed in a statement.
RELATED: Houston ISD coach named ‘kingpin’ in cheating scandal has bond set at $300K
Newton was an assistant principal at Booker T. Washington High School in Houston ISD.
“All three of these employees have been arrested and will be receiving notifications relieving them of their duties effective immediately.”
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