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A principal resigned after a team of student journalists uncovered discrepancies in her credentials.
Student journalists from Pittsburg High School published an article on their school newspaper alleging that their new principal has fake credentials. The students narrated that they had previously interviewed Principal Amy Robertson for a simple article to introduce her to the school. However, she refused to answer some important questions, which led them to investigate.
The students began checking Robertson’s résumé and learned that she earned her master’s and doctorate degrees from Corllins University. After weeks of research, the students confirmed that Corllins has never been accredited by the US Department of Education and is reputed for being involved in scams related to credentials. In addition, Robertson’s statements about her undergraduate degree from the University of Tulsa did not match information provided by the said university.
Online articles dating back to 2012 also show that Robertson once served as a school principal in Dubai, but authorities suspended the school’s license and stripped Robertson of her teaching license, saying that she was not authorized to run the school.
After the article on her questionable background was published, Robertson resigned from her job as principal but stood firm in denying the accusations.
In 2004, a similar incident happened to a Washington D.C. school principal who was fired after complaints from parents and students led to the discovery of her fake doctorate degree. She was later transferred to another school and assigned a different position.
According to US government officials, diploma mills, or organizations that sell fake degrees, are becoming more common because of technology. This is dangerous because it enables unqualified people to be hired for jobs that require intensive training.