PHOENIX — It’s graduation time at Brophy College Preparatory, but not everybody will be celebrating.
The Phoenix high school sent a letter to parents Friday notifying them of a “widespread” cheating scandal in the students’ math class.
The elite Jesuit prep school has educated the sons of Valley business and political leaders for generations at its leafy north-central Phoenix campus.
Tuition is $17,000 a year.
Principal Bob Ryan said in the last few days administrators discovered certain students had devised a system where they would pay classmates to falsify their identities in the course’s digital assessment system and then complete online homework and assessments.
“We believed this to be limited to a small group of students, but our investigation has revealed this cheating to be widespread, even pervasive, across several sections of this course," Ryan said.
Ryan went on to say the school believes a “significant” number of students had engaged in or were aware of the system at some point this past semester.
“It is difficult for me to express my level of disappointment this morning. I am shocked and saddened that so many students – near the end of their journey with us – would engage in such intentional acts of duplicity and dishonesty,” said Ryan.
Ryan said that the students who facilitated the system will be held accountable for their actions, but due to graduation, it makes it impossible for the school to ensure all students are held accountable in a way that is fair, equitable, and consistent.
“Rest assured that this situation will have lasting implications for our administrative team and faculty. Our internal review will include a thorough audit of our assessment strategy across every department to ensure the integrity of our academic program,” Ryan said.
Read the full letter here:
VERSIÓN EN ESPAÑOL: 'Estoy conmocionado y muy triste': El director expone el escándalo de trampa en la Escuela Preparatoria Brophy
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