William L. Holladay III, Virtual Education Fraud, Alabama 2021

Virtual Education Fraud Rocks Alabama Schools

In a shocking move, former school superintendent William L. Holladay III, 57, pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to defraud the Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE) by falsely inflating the number of students enrolled in public virtual schools.

According to court records and information contained in Holladay's plea agreement, the scheme involved submitting lists of enrolled students who were, in reality, full-time students at private schools located in other parts of the state. As a result, the school systems received payments from Alabama's Education Trust Fund as if the students actually attended public schools.

Holladay and his co-defendant, Thomas Michael Sisk, superintendent of the Limestone County Schools system (LCS), offered various benefits to private schools, including laptop computers, access to online curriculum, standardized testing, and monetary payments, to obtain private school student information for use in the scheme.

The students whose identities were used in the scheme had little to no connection to the public-school districts. Those students continued to attend brick-and-mortar private schools each day; they continued to participate in private school athletics; and their parents continued to pay tuition to the private schools.

Holladay faces a maximum five-year prison sentence, as well as substantial monetary penalties, at his upcoming sentencing. Co-defendant William Richard Carter, Jr. is currently set for trial on February 7, 2022. Co-defendants Gregory Earl Corkren, David Webb Tutt, and Thomas Michael Sisk, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the government. Gregory Corkren also pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the United States Department of Education's Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross, Alice S. LaCour, and Brett J. Talley are prosecuting the case.

Defendant: William L. Holladay III
Criminal Charges: Conspiring to defraud the Alabama State Department of Education by falsely inflating the number of students enrolled in public virtual schools
City and State: Montgomery, AL
Exact Date: December 16, 2021
Sentence or Outcome: Pleaded guilty, faces maximum five-year prison sentence and substantial monetary penalties

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-mdal/pr/former-school-superintendent-pleads-guilty-virtual-education-fraud-case