Texas Teacher Certification Scheme: Bonds Set for HISD Employees Accused of Delaying Four-Year Plan

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A day after an alleged teacher credentialing scandal was announced in Houston, all of the accused suspects made their first court appearance Tuesday.

We continue to learn more about what happened as the Harris County District Attorney’s Office confirms that a statewide scheme was developed to allow hundreds of paying teachers to become certified.

We still don’t know how many Houston Independent School District teachers are among the more than 200 teachers who benefited from this scandal and paid $2,500 to get a certification pass.

RELATED: Bail Set at $200K for 2 of 5 Suspects Charged in Teacher Certification Fraud Scandal

The Texas Education Agency is not providing a list of teachers involved in this situation, citing the investigation.

Five people have been charged in the teacher certification fraud scandal, the district attorney’s office said.

That includes three HISD employees who are now relieved of their duties. On Monday, HISD confirmed those employees will remain on paid leave until the end of the proceedings.

One of them includes the man who was considered the mastermind of this plan.

Vincent Grayson, 57, is the head boys basketball coach at Booker T. Washington High School. Grayson is accused of bribing testing site employees and two HISD assistant principals to help him carry out the four-year scheme.

“It is alleged that between May 2020 and February 2024, you charged teachers $2,500 to have teachers seeking certification register at a testing site, and that teacher left and someone else had to take the certification test ” a court hearing officer said. Harris County Probable Cause Court.

The officer set bail at $300,000.

Former Booker T. Washington School assistant principal Nicholas Newton also appeared in court Tuesday.

“This defendant was a trusted person who administered tests to participants,” the judge read in court.

His bail was set at $200,000. He is accused of taking more than 400 tests to help teachers across the state become certified.

The judge also set bail at $200,000 for former Yates High School assistant principal Lashonda Roberts, who is accused of recruiting dozens of teachers to participate in the fraud.

Roberts was absent from probable cause court; however, her lawyer still came for her.

“My client no longer works, so her financial options will be seriously limited,” said Rpbertsa’s lawyer.

RELATED: 5 people charged in alleged teacher certification fraud scandal, Harris County DA says

“This is completely unacceptable,” HISD Communications’ Alexandra Elizondo said Monday after news of the scandal broke.

This is an HISD investigation that the district says they had no idea about until the arrest.

HISD says it will investigate the situation and fire teachers who received certifications through this fraudulent scheme.

TEA does not say where these teachers were or continue to teach.

SEE ALSO: 13 Investigates: Number of Uncertified Teachers in HISD More Than Doubles This Year

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