GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — The number of students involved in a cheating scandal at a Gwinnett County high school has grown to nearly 200.
Students at Mill Creek High School are facing disciplinary action for plagiarizing a summer reading assignment.
The estimated number of students involved at the beginning of the week was 80, but officials said Friday that the final figure is 190 students, which is roughly one in every 20 students based on the school's population.
Mill Creek’s principal sent out a letter earlier this week saying the cheating scam was detected by language arts teachers.
It tied back to a summer reading assignment for the entire school, which required students to turn in six essay questions.
“You can copy the assignment. You ca get it offline,” junior Morgan Farmer said.
With parent’s permission, Channel 2’s Nicole Carr spoke with students who did not cheat, but knew kids had worked in study groups and accessed essay answers on a website or had someone else do their assignment.
“I mean you should be punished for cheating because that is what our school does not do. We do not cheat,” Farmer said.
Students involved in the cheating scam were given one day out of school suspension, which some student thought was a harsh punishment.
“They shouldn’t make a big deal out of it. If it was like a final exam or a test, they have every right to be,” junior Shamir Ahmed said.
Some students have already served their suspensions, and other are still being dealt with.
According to the student handbook and students Carr spoke with, more severe consequences, including loss of honor grad status are possible.
Cox Media Group
