Texas teacher certification cheating scheme: Bond set for 4 Houston ISD employees
Vincent Grayson (left), Nicholas Newtown (middle), and Lashonda Roberts (right)
HOUSTON - Bonds have been set for three Houston Independent School District employees who were charged in an alleged teacher cheating scandal. They appeared in court on Friday.
The HISD employees included Nicholas Newton, an assistant principal at Booker T. Washington, LaShonda Roberts, an assistant principal at Yates High School, and Vincent Grayson, a coach at Booker T. Washington High School.
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All five defendants are charged with two counts of engaging in organized criminal activity.
Newton’s bond was set for $25,000 for each charge ($50,000 total). Grayson’s bond was set for $50,000 for each charge ($100,000 total). Robert’s bond was set for $25,000 for each charge ($50,000 total).
Darian Nikole Wilhite
A fourth suspect, Darian Nikole Wilhite, appeared in court later on Friday and had her bond set to $50,000 for one charge and $25,000 for the second charge, making her total bond $75,000.
On Monday, the Harris County District Attorney’s Office announced felony charges had been filed against five people who allegedly participated in an illegal cheating scandal that may have resulted in as many as 400 teachers receiving unearned certifications statewide.
Mike Levine, a felony chief in the DA's Public Corruption Division, approximated the illicit earnings of the cheating ring’s orchestrator to be exceeding $1 million.