TEA Releases Names of 60 More Teachers Under Investigation in “Pay-to-Test” Certification Scandal

The TEA is investigating 60 additional teachers for possibly participating in a Houston-based cheating ring that prosecutors say allowed hundreds of educators to gain fraudulent educator certification in recent years, the Houston Chronicle reported Thursday.

The additional names, and 33 districts (in the Houston, North Texas and other areas of the state) in which they were last known to have worked, were listed in the Chronicle’s digital paywall edition.

In December, the TEA released the names and last known affiliated districts of more than 100 teachers that the TEA is investigating in the certification scandal.

Five people, including three former Houston ISD educators, face criminal charges for allegedly running a $1 million cheating ring in which prospective educators paid others to take their certification tests at a central Houston testing center.