Page 2. Sentencing is expected next year. LIMESTONE COUNTY, Ala. Former Athens City Schools Superintendent Trey Holladay pleaded guilty in a multi-million dollar virtual academy fraud scheme. Show All Show Calendar. Athens school administrator William Richard Rick Carter Jr. was found guilty of conspiracy, four counts of wire fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft in March. The scheme saw educators steal the identities of students in private schools and then use them to bilk public schools out of millions. Additionally, any defendant convicted of aggravated identity theft could receive a mandatory consecutive two-year sentence on each count. In 1995 the school district bought the former Indian Hill Mall, a failing shopping center built in the 1960s, and redeveloped it into an educational, commercial and retail complex called The Village at Indian Hill.[1]. Alabama department of education wanted defendants to repay $5.7 million, found guilty of conspiracy, four counts of wire fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft in March, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. Carter faces up to 20 years in prison in addition to fines and restitution. As Attorney General, I am committed to stand together with our partners in law enforcement to ensure that allegations of wrongdoing are investigated, and that appropriate action is taken.. Its just wrong, Opinion | Sen. Jay Hovey may have meant well, but he was wrong. Dr. Trey Holladay and Deborah Holladay released the following joint statement. The federal indictment claims that Holladay and his wife were the masterminds behind this plan. If youre thinking of altering your workout routine, youre probably looking for new exercises and equipment to help you reach your fitness goals. The money Alabama sets aside for public education should be used for exactly thateducating the students of our public schools, stated United States Attorney Franklin. Each will have three years of supervised release after serving prison time. Any defendant convicted of wire or mail fraud faces a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment, as well as substantial monetary penalties and restitution. The defendants offered the private schools various inducementsincluding computers, direct payments, and access to online curriculumto persuade them to share their students academic records and personal identifying information with the public school districts. None of the other individuals charged in the indictment remain affiliated with Athens City Schools in any manner. First Day of School 2023-2024. The agreement states Holladay will face a minimum sentence of no fewer than 30 months in prison. I hope that this indictment serves as a warning for others who might try to line their pockets with public funds., Public corruption remains the FBIs top criminal priority because public officials must be trusted to do their jobs with honesty and integrity, stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Johnnie Sharp, Jr. The citizens of Alabama should rest assured that the FBI will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate corruption at every level and hold accountable those officials who violate the publics trust and use their position for profit or gain., These so-called educators have been charged for preying on the schools that placed them in positions of trust to educate students and the students they promised to serve. Public Invited to 'Spring Into Wellness' Community Health Festival. Date: 8/14/2023. Former Athens City Schools superintendent Trey Holladay was sentenced Thursday afternoon to five years in federal prison after pleading guilty to participating in a multiyear scheme to. Holladay left the school district months after the FBI started investigating him in 2020. The Alabama department of education wanted defendants to repay $5.7 million paid to Athens City Schools for the 2016-17 and 2017-18 school years. As a result of the fraudulent reporting the school systems received payments from Alabamas Education Trust Fund as if the students actually attended public schools. The DOJ reminds the public that an indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. conspired to tell the state false numbers of students in their school systems, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. Trey Holladay is a Principal at Oxford City Schools based in Oxford, Alabama. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. According to a former lawmaker, the FBI and U.S. Department of Education were asking questions about other possible issues within Alabamas virtual schools as late as this fall. Details on the plea agreement were released by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Montgomery on Thursday. Hollaway was ordered to pay $2.9 million. The Alabama Attorney Generals Office also assisted in the investigation. The state department told federal officials it had recouped funding from Limestone and Conecuh counties, but did not state the amounts. Former Athens City School teacher Deborah Irby Holladay was indicted on one charge of Conspiracy and numerous charges of Wire Fraud. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (updated 4/4/2023), Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (updated 1/26/2023). He left Limestone County Schools to become the director of Bristol, TN schools. Trey Holladay. Corkren faced an additional two-year sentence and up to $250,000 fine for the aggravated identity theft charge. Former Athens City Schools Superintendent Trey Holladay will be sentenced July 21, along with Gregory Earl Corkren and David Webb Tutt. APRs Josh Moon first reported about the FBIs investigation into Holladay in August when he reported that in less than three years, Limestones general fund budget swelled from a reserve balance of around $2 million to now more than $20 million. The Day's Scoop: Your daily email briefing on all things Alabama politics. RELATED: Athens City Schools approves separation agreement with former superintendent, $250,000 payment. And the investigation might not be over. Athens had experienced a similar uptick in revenue the last five years. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. Holladay , . Holladay was one of three defendants sentenced Thursday by U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson. In November 2008, 75% of voters approved Measure PS, a $235 million school bond measure, to provide for the renovation of schools. During the school years that the scheme allegedly occurredthe 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 school yearsthe private school students and parents had little to no connection with the public school districts in which they were supposedly enrolled. He is also listed as a friend of Trey Holladay in the indictment. ", Public corruption remains the FBIs top criminal priority because public officials must be trusted to do their jobs with honesty and integrity,stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Johnnie Sharp, Jr.The citizens of Alabama should rest assured that the FBI will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate corruption at every level and hold accountable those officials who violate the publics trust and use their position for profit or gain., Public officials and employees are obligated to perform their duties and administer funds with integrity and according to requirements of the law, said Alabama Attorney General Marshall. Crusader. | We appreciate so much the overwhelming support from our friends and community. Thompson noted that all of the private schools utilized in the scheme were located in the Black Belt region. Former Athens City Schools superintendent William L. "Trey" Holladay III on Thursday received the maximum sentence of five years in federal prison and ordered to pay $2.9 million in . TEAM MASCOT. His previous experience includes system-wide administrator, high school principal, elementary principal, assistant principal, athletic director, classroom teacher, and head . It goes on to allege, "It was a purpose of the conspiracy for Trey Holladay, Deborah Holladay, Carter, Corkren, Tutt, and Sisk to obtain, directly and indirectly, for their own personal use, portions of the increased revenue generated for ACS, LCS, and CCS by the fraudulent enrollment of private school students in the ACS, LCS, and CCS virtual schools.". All rights reserved (About Us). Upon reviewing the allegations against Dr. Rick Carter, Athens City Schools has placed him on administrative leave until further notice. This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. The three pleaded guilty last year for their roles in the scheme. Copyright 2021 WAFF. According to a plea agreement finalized Thursday, Trey Holladay admitted that he, along with Thomas Michael Sisk, former superintendent of the Limestone County Schools system, conspired to tell the state false numbers of students in their school systems so that they could pocket additional state money. In the initial indictment, prosecutors said that the two school districts were improperly paid $7 million in the scheme, which Holladay, Sisk and four alleged codefendants diverted. Pomona Unified School District or PUSD serves approximately 30,000 Pre-K-12 students and 17,000 adult learners at 44 schools in Pomona and Diamond Bar, California.It is located 30 miles east of downtown Los Angeles, and is the third-largest school district in Los Angeles County.. In total, the Alabama Department of Education believes the six people robbed public schools of more than $5 million using a variety of methods to falsify virtual schools rolls and illegally gain more per-pupil funding. A few years ago, some of the same people excusing Trump's recent indictment were celebrating Gov. As Attorney General, I am committed to stand together with our partners in law enforcement to ensure that allegations of wrongdoing are investigated,and that appropriate action is taken.". Co-defendants Corkren, Tutt, and Sisk previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the government. Trey Holladay. 'Trey' Holladay, Ed.D. The charges against us are unfounded and will be vigorously defended. Former Limestone County Schools Superintendent Tom Sisk, left, and former Athens City Schools Superintendent Trey Holladay, right. The students whose identities were used in the scheme had little to no connection to the public school districts, federal officials confirmed. Trey Holladay, the mastermind of the virtual school scam, was hit with a lengthy prison sentence and hefty fine. The defendants named in the indictment are: (1)Dr. William L. (Trey) Holladay, III, 56, a resident of Athens, Alabama and the former superintendent of the Athens City Schools district; (2)Deborah Irby Holladay, 57, of Athens and formerly employed by the Athens City Schools district; (3)William Richard (Rick) Carter, Jr., 45, also of Athens, currently the executive director of planning for Athens City Schools and formerly the districts director of innovative programs; (4)David Webb Tutt, 61, of Uniontown, Alabama; (5)Gregory (Greg) Earl Corkren, 56, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama; and (6)Thomas Michael Sisk, 55, a resident of Toney, Alabama and formerly the superintendent of the Limestone County School district. We appreciate so much the overwhelming support from our friends and community. In the four months that the investigation has been underway, officials within the school system say they have fully cooperated with a federal investigation, and, per the superintendents contract, has continued to pay Holladays salary and related benefits. Published on May 25, 2021 at 2:25 pm CDT. Landon Powell, Matt Williams, Hunter Dilworth, Ryan Brown, Trey Dyson and JK Love. The FBI started investigating Holladays home in June 2020. Additionally, Trey Holladay, Carter, and Corkren are charged with aggravated identity theft. is a thirty-one-year veteran public school educator with twenty-seven years in educational leadership.He is in his fourth year as superintendent of the Athens City Schools system in Athens, AL. Dr. Holladay has almost two years remaining on his superintendent contract. Details on the plea agreement were released by the U.S. Attorneys Office in Montgomery on Thursday. Example video title will go here for this video. NASAs SpaceX Crew-5 Astronauts Visits Marshall Space Flight Center, Mental Health Awareness Month: Erasing the stigma of mental illness, Athens City Schools approves separation agreement with former superintendent, $250,000 payment, Limestone County Schools Superintendent Tom Sisk heading to Bristol, TN Board of Education. This spring, Le Creuset has introduced an exciting new shade thats already selling fast: shallot, a soft lavender with pink and slight gray undertones. Because of state laws, Athens Schools officials have been unable to terminate Rick Carter, who was convicted in March of seven felonies. of Justice explained in a statement: The indictment alleges that the defendants conspired to fraudulently enroll students in public virtual schools and then falsely report those students to the Alabama State Department of Education. Others indicted include William Richard Carter, Jr. (Conspiracy, Wire Fraud, Aggravated Identity Theft), Gregory Earl Corkren (Conspiracy, Aggravated Identity Theft), and David Webb Tutt (Conspiracy). ATHENS, Ala. (WAFF) - Former Athens superintendent, William Lee "Trey" Holladay has entered a guilty plea for a conspiracy charge. Carters motion for a new trial was rejected by Judge Thompson. The elections are held on a first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of even-numbered years effective with the 2018 election. He is in his fourth year as superintendent of the Athens City Schools system in Athens, AL. Its just wrong, Opinion | Sen. Jay Hovey may have meant well, but he was wrong. Any defendant convicted of wire or mail fraud faces a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment, as well as substantial monetary penalties and restitution. WAFFs Madison Scarpino was at the meeting. Published on July 22, 2022 at 8:08 am CDT. As a result of this, districts received payments from Alabamas Education Trust Fund as if the students actually attended public schools. Peeples most recently served as an inspector in the Inspection Division at FBI Headquarters in Washington. To learn more about The Alabama Education Lab and receive notifications about stories and events, sign up for its newsletter, Ed Chat. If convicted of the conspiracy charge, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment, as well as substantial monetary penalties and restitution. Pasadena's Minimum Wage Rate Increases to $16.93 on July 1. Holladays next court date was scheduled for February 2022. W.L. Gregory Corkren was a resident of Tuscaloosa County, Alabama and was a retired public educator. HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) - Former Athens Superintendent William Lee "Trey" Holladay is scheduled to be sentenced Tuesday after pleading guilty for conspiracy in December. LIMESTONE COUNTY, Ala. - Former Athens City Schools Superintendent Trey Holladay officially pleaded guilty in a multi-million dollar virtual academy fraud scheme on Thursday. Moving forward, we will be a transparent and accountable school system which provides the best educational experience we can for our students. Now a resident of Montgomery, Holladay pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the Alabama State Department of Education. When he entered his guilty plea, Holladay admitted that he, along with co-defendant Thomas Michael Sisk, superintendent of the Limestone County Schools system (LCS), conspired to fraudulently inflate the number of students enrolled in their systems, the statement reads. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. Assistant Superintendent at Iredell-Statesville Schools Statesville, NC. Scholastic Inc. . Pomona Unified School District or PUSD serves approximately 30,000 Pre-K-12 students and 17,000 adult learners at 44 schools in Pomona and Diamond Bar, California. As the office responsible for identifying fraud, abuse, and other criminal activity involving U.S. Department of Education funds and programs, ensuring that those who abuse these funds or game the system for their own selfish purposes are stopped and held accountable for their criminal actions is a big part of our mission., Integrity and trust are characteristics of Alabama teachers and administrators. Former Athens superintendent Trey Hollaway, who pleaded guilty to his role in concocting a scheme to defraud public schools across the state, will spend the next 60 months in federal prison. 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