Chief Executive Cheats His Way Through

In The Los Angeles Times, Howard Blume posts an article called "Charter school groups chief blamed for 2010 cheating scandal" about chief executive of charter schools in Crescendo, John Allen. The article was published on August 17, 2012. John Allen had asked Crescendo principals to display the state standardized test to the teachers. He had told all the principals to do as they were told or else they it would leave them jobless. Teachers were given copies of the standardized tests and they had to study them and teach the kids. The Crescendo principals were dragged into cheating and they could not believe that they had agreed on such an act. Reviews state that John Allen sincerely cared about the students and the education. Teachers announced that John Allen was a strict chief executive, and also very competitive. L.A. unified fired him and decided to close all campuses in Crescendo, South Los Angeles. The teachers were fired and 1,400 students had no choice but to find another school. Teachers began to report Allen on May 3, 2010. La Motte, member of the L.A Board of Education protected Allen because he was a friend of hers. La Unified announced that Allen would be suspended for 6 months then return to a low administrative job. Most principals were suspended for 10 days. Two of Crescendo’s schools were renewed. “In October 2011, Allen sued for wrongful dismissal.” Former Crescendo principals established new charter schools in the place of Crescendo’s campuses. This article represents the unprofessional side of the people who are in charge of providing education for children. Competitiveness drove a chief executive to disobey the rules and cheat his way through to have his school be on top. The scores should not matter as much as the amount of information a student has absorbed.