When Baltimore City school leaders were recently forced to address an embarrassing grade scandal at a local high school, they tried to save face by saying they identified, isolated, and fixed the issue by getting rid of a problematic principal and placing her deputy on administrative leave.
But just days after their lopsided victory lap, a new Project Baltimore report revealed that the principal who was brought in to clean up the mess at Augusta Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts was herself the focus of a grade changing controversy at her former school, Joseph C. Briscoe Academy in west Baltimore.
In a memo sent earlier this month, City Schools described Kamala Carnes, the new principal of Augusta Fells, as “experienced and transformational.”
But a former Briscoe student claimed, “I can say some people who graduated shouldn’t have graduated.”
Project Baltimore reviewed Briscoe student transcripts that revealed at least one graduate was absent or late 110 days during his senior year. Records show he failed science with a 59, but his transcript shows he got a D- and graduated.
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FOX45 also obtained a recording of a conversation between Briscoe administrators before the school’s 2019 graduation. In the recording, administrators are discussing a student who failed required classes but still received a diploma. When it was explained the student never did extra work, an unidentified person on the recording asks, “What can we do?” Another responds, “So, we have to do a grade change? Is the final grade in there right now?”
“Yes,” someone replies.
Following the 2019 report, an internal investigation was launched. The investigation took 17 months to complete, but by that time, Carnes had already been hired as the new principal at Augusta Fells.
The lack of due diligence is just the latest black eye for a public school system that has a history of missteps and mismanagement.
Augusta Fells first made headlines earlier this month after an investigation revealed that hundreds of students were failing basic classes such as English and math but were being passed by teachers, with the top grade point averages at the school hovering around 0.13.
One of the parents profiled in the piece was Tiffany France, who said she thought her 17-year-old son would be receiving his diploma in June. But she learned that, after four years of attending the west Baltimore school, her son would be moving back to the ninth grade.
Public outrage followed, which led to Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan demanding an investigation and the City Council promising to put a public hearing on its calendar. The scandal also prompted an apology from Baltimore City School Board Chairwoman Linda Chinnia and its CEO Sonja Santelises.
“I want to take this opportunity to apologize to those students and families who may be affected,” Santelises said.
Chinnia did not provide details about the grading irregularities but called the situation “painful and unacceptable.”
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She added that she was aware of “significant shortcomings” by school staff three years ago. She also claimed the school district acted immediately and had conducted routine audits, selected a new principal, Carnes, and has been working with students to make up lost credits.
Problems have plagued Baltimore schools for quite some time.
Augusta Fells is ranked within the bottom 50% of all 1,359 schools in Maryland.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott has attempted to blame the school’s problems on funding.
However, a comparison of similar school districts in the United States found that Baltimore was fifth in per-student spending among the nation’s 100 largest school systems, spending more on education than Chicago, Milwaukee, and Detroit. The city spends $6,000 more per student than Houston, which has a similar demographic. Houston also outscores Baltimore on English and math proficiencies, according to the Department of Education.
