El Paso, TX – A former high-ranking official in the El Paso Independent School District (EPISD) has been charged in a scheme to defraud the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) by artificially inflating state and federal student accountability scores. James Anderson, the former EPISD Assistant Superintendent-Secondary Schools Division, surrendered to federal agents on Wednesday morning.
Anderson, 40, is accused of conspiring with five co-defendants to commit mail fraud and making false statements to federal investigators. The indictment alleges that the scheme, which took place between February 2006 and September 2013, was designed to keep EPISD compliant with program requirements under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) portion of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA).
According to the indictment, the defendants submitted fraudulent misrepresentations to the Texas Education Agency and the DOE, making it appear as though EPISD was meeting and exceeding AYP standards. The indictment also alleges that Anderson and others encouraged EPISD employees to lie about their involvement in the scheme and intimidated those who did not follow their directions.
The indictment further alleges that Anderson and others created a plan to reduce or eliminate the African-American subgroup at certain schools to make it appear to the DOE that no African-American subgroup existed on any EPISD Priority School Division campus.
Anderson faces up to five years in federal prison upon conviction of conspiracy to defraud the Government, up to 20 years in federal prison upon conviction of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, and up to five years in federal prison for making a false statement to a federal agent.
The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Education Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorneys Debra Kanof and Robert Almonte are prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.
Anderson is expected to have his initial appearance in federal court tomorrow afternoon at 2:30. He remains in federal custody at this time.
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Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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