Likely New Atlanta Superintendent Talks Atlanta Cheating Scandal

Broadcast version of this story.

That means rebounding from one of the darkest moments for APS.

Dr. Carstarphen was asked to reflect on what was called the nation’s largest cheating scandal.

“I think it was an emotional time for the country. It was a very sobering moment for all of us as we reflected on our own practices and behaviors and asked ourselves tough questions about what we were doing in our systems.”

Carstarphen said she was hopeful the district would put systems in place to make sure nothing of that magnitude would ever happen again.

“It’s really important in our business, especially large urban districts, that there are accountability and compliance functions in place so that you can monitor these things throughout every cycle of testing.”

With over two decades as an educator, Carstarphen highlighted her experience in implementing accountability measures.

“I was the chief accountability officer in Washington D.C. and I served in similar roles in other districts, so putting those systems in place are second nature to me.”

Inside the library of Hope Hill Elementary School and flanked by members of the Atlanta Board of Education, Carstarphen talked about accountability measures at her current district.

“I learned a lot being in Austin. Austin was also a district almost fifteen or seventeen years ago that was involved in a cheating scandal. And as a result, they put those kind of mechanism in place and since I’ve been there, we’ve made them even stronger.”

This weekend Dr. Meria Carstarphen is expected to visit every APS high school.

She then returns next week to meet the public in four community meetings.