And Thompson said testimony revealed that 98 percent of the students used in the scheme were white. As a result of the fraudulent reporting the school systems received payments from Alabamas Education Trust Fund as if the students actually attended public schools. . The Plaintiffs, in this case, are students who prosecutors say had their identities stolen. Holladays wife, Deborah, was accused in the federal indictment of establishing a bogus consulting company, which the Athens system allegedly paid to locate virtual students. ACS would then use, directly and indirectly, portions of the excess money to fund the completion of capital projects, including, the new campus of Athens High School. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Codefendants Gregory Earl Corkren, David Webb Tutt and Sisk previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the government. STEALING FROM THE STATE: Retired educator received $1.7M from ACS None of the other individuals charged in the indictment remain affiliated with Athens City Schools in any manner. The following statement was read by Superintendent Beth Patton: The Athens City Schools community is shocked and very concerned to read Tuesdays release from the U.S. Attorneys office. Athens City School Administrator Found Guilty in Virtual Education Two other co-defendants Greg Corkren and David Tutt have admitted to operating similar businesses, with all involved raking in hundreds of thousands of dollars for locating virtual students that never actually enrolled in the Athens virtual school. Because of state laws, Athens Schools officials have been unable to terminate Rick Carter, who was convicted in March of seven felonies. Federal officials said the two former superintendents and four other people fraudulently claimed private school students who attended schools in the Black Belt Region, were enrolled full time in Athens City and Limestone County School Districts. According to a plea agreement finalized Thursday, Trey Holladay admitted that he, along with Thomas Michael Sisk, former superintendent of the Limestone County Schools system, conspired to tell the state false numbers of students in their school systems so that they could pocket additional state money. Trey Holladay. Rick Carter is an employee of the Athens City School District with some past duties including technology teacher and virtual programs coordinator. LIMESTONE COUNTY, Ala. Former Athens City Schools Superintendent Trey Holladay, his wife and former Limestone County Schools Superintendent Tom Sisk are among those named in a federal. Court records show on Tuesday Holladay changed his plea of not guilty to guilty for one count of conspiracy. Former Athens superintendent ordered to serve years in federal prison Former Athens City Schools superintendent pleads guilty to - WAFF The investigation remains ongoing and confidential at the request of federal officials. April 27, 2023. Andy Trotter . TM & document.write(new Date().getFullYear()); To learn more about The Alabama Education Lab and receive notifications about stories and events, sign up for its newsletter, Ed Chat. Corkren also pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. The elections are held on a first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of even-numbered years effective with the 2018 election. The indictment states the purpose of the conspiracy was to obtain greater state funding allocations through the Foundation Program than they would otherwise have been entitled. W.L. 'Trey' Holladay | EDU - Scholastic Former Athens City Schools superintendent pleads guilty to conspiracy charge, Whats old is new again: Joe Davis Stadium comes back to life ahead of HFC season-opener, Former FBI investigator gives insight on Texas shooter manhunt, READ MORE: Former Limestone Co. She says following the statement, the board unanimously voted to keep Rick Carter on administrative leave. Marshals, Secret Service assist in Hartselle, Bill passes to ban smoking in car with minor, Tuesday Morning set to close all its stores, 6 in, Domestic abuse victim shares story of attempted murder, BestReviews.com - Top gifts to make everyone happy this spring, Surprise your mom with one of these Mothers Day, Mothers Day inspo: This foot massager has 20,000, Drew Barrymores Walmart collection is perfect for, Best Mothers Day gifts for the budding plant mom, Best Mothers Day Gifts for moms obsessed with books, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Example video title will go here for this video. Superintendent pleads guilty in fraud case. The system refers further inquiries about the matter to Dr. Holladay's legal counsel and the federal officials involved." . Former Athens superintendent Trey Hollaway, who pleaded guilty to his role in concocting a scheme to defraud public schools across the state, will spend the next 60 months in federal prison. Holladay , . The students continued to attend the brick-and-mortar private schools each day, they received instruction from employees of the private schools, and, after class, some played sports for their private schools. Tom Sisk, who pleaded guilty for his role in the scheme, will serve 18 months in federal prison. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Public Invited to 'Spring Into Wellness' Community Health Festival. Co-defendant William Richard Carter, Jr. is currently set for trial on February 7, 2022. During the school years that the scheme allegedly occurredthe 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 school yearsthe private school students and parents had little to no connection with the public school districts in which they were supposedly enrolled. Two more of his co-conspirators will join him for at least a portion of that time. Moving forward, we will be a transparent and accountable school system which provides the best educational experience we can for our students. Retired Superintendent Of Ed., Athens City Schools Experience at: Athens City Schools, School Superintendents of Alabama, Personalized Learning - Athens Renaissance Show All Show Calendar. Co-defendants Corkren, Tutt, and Sisk previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the government. Upon reviewing the allegations against Dr. Rick Carter, Athens City Schools has placed him on administrative leave until further notice. Retired teacher Gregory Greg Earl Corkren was sentenced to 22 months in federal prison and must pay $1.3 million in restitution, and former Marengo Academy football coach David Webb Tutt was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison and must pay restitution of $259,000 and a fine of $15,000. In total, the Alabama Department of Education believes the six people robbed public schools of more than $5 million using a variety of methods to falsify virtual schools rolls and illegally gain more per-pupil funding. Corkren will pay $1.3 million. Trey Holladay, 57, faces up to five years in prison and substantial monetary penalties according to a statement by the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Middle District of Alabama. Hubbard, originally sentenced to four years for violating ethics laws, has been in the custody of the ADOC since September 2020. Published on December 17, 2021 at 7:52 am CST. Pasadena's Minimum Wage Rate Increases to $16.93 on July 1. The private schools used in the scheme are almost entirely white. Trey Holladay, Athens, Alabama professional. Expert Retired STEALING FROM THE STATE: Ex-superintendents indicted in multiyear Now, after months of a federal investigation, the Athens City School Board of Education unanimously approved a $250,000 separation agreement with Holladay. He left Limestone County Schools to become the director of Bristol, TN schools. Trial delayed for defendants in virtual schools fraud case The U.S. Attorney's Office in Montgomery has named two former school superintendents in an indictment. Limestone County Schools released a response to the indictment: On Tuesday, February 23, 2021, Limestone County Schools learned it was mentioned in an indictment for involvement with a virtual school program during the 2016-2017 school year. While the school system was mentioned in the indictment brought in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, the indictment does not name the Limestone County Board of Education or anyone currently involved with Limestone County Schools as defendants. Pomona Unified School District or PUSD serves approximately 30,000 Pre-K-12 students and 17,000 adult learners at 44 schools in Pomona and Diamond Bar, California.It is located 30 miles east of downtown Los Angeles, and is the third-largest school district in Los Angeles County.. Carters motion for a new trial was rejected by Judge Thompson. According to the indictment, "The purpose of the conspiracy for ACS [Athens City Schools], LCS [Limestone County Schools], and CCS [Conecuh County Schools] to obtain greater statefunding allocations through the Foundation Program than they would otherwise have been entitled to by purporting to enroll into their respective virtual schools students who were in fact full-time students of brick-and-mortar private schools and who were not taking even close to what could be considered full course loads through a virtual education program.