Pittsburg High School had a new principal, which piqued the interest of one of the students. A budding journalist wanted to work on an article about this matter for the student newspaper. The kids from the student publication quickly got to work and started to do some research. However, they were surprised by what they discovered while working on an article about her. The young journalists only became more and more worried as they found out more information about the principal. What exactly was it about Dr. Amy Robertson’s past that set off alarm bells for these high school students?
Student Journalists Were The Ones Who Found Out The Questionable Past Of The New Principal
Pittsburg High School
In 1887, Pittsburg High School was established in southern Kansas. It went on to be the biggest high school in the city that it was named after. The school boasts 65 staff members and a student population of 860. Among its notable alumni are NFL legends Kerry Meier, Shad Meier, and Bill Russel.
Pittsburg High School
The School Paper
The Booster Redux is the student publication of the high school. It is worth mentioning that the paper has received a couple of awards. The staff members take journalism seriously. However, did they go too far when they worked on a story that led to the resignation of the new principal? Even though it was already well-received, the newspaper took high school journalism to a whole new level.
The School Paper
The Right Person
Dr. Amy Robertson made an impression on the members of the school board. This was not only true for the administrations but for the pupils as well! Destry Brown said that Robertson was the perfect person for the job. This was why she was picked to take on the role of principal on March 6, 2017. However, these student journalists found out something that made people question this decision.
The Right Person
They Did Not Know The Truth
“Robertson comes to Pittsburg with decades of experience in education,” said Zach Fletcher, who is the school district spokesperson. Among other things, she was the CEO of Atticus I.S. Consultants. According to the press release, it was “an education consulting firm [at which she] gained management experience at the equivalence of a building administrator and superintendent.” She was set to become the principal of the school on July 1, 2017. Who would have thought that she was hiding something from everyone?
They Did Not Know The Truth
They Had Good Intentions
Destry Brown seemed excited and even said that her skills would be a great asset to the high school. When he spoke to The Kansas City Star, he shared, “I felt like she is very knowledgeable about what is going on in education today. And she knows about how a building works and about maintaining a safe environment.” At the time, he had no idea that this was not actually the case.
They Had Good Intentions
Something Was Wrong
The staff members of The Booster Redux could tell that something was off about the new principal only a month after her arrival. As journalists, they wanted to get to the bottom of things! Maddie Baden, one of the student journalists, wanted to know more about Robertson through an interview. However, the principal told her something that sounded like a red flag.
Something Was Wrong
Launching An Investigation
No one had heard of Robertson before she arrived at the school. This was the reason The Booster Redux wanted to do investigative work! After all, they needed more information for her welcoming editorial. These student journalists dug deep to learn more about her past. However, they were shocked when they came across a particular piece of information. As they continued with their research, it seemed like she was working on an agenda of her own. She wanted to shut down the school publication!
Launching An Investigation
Doing Their Homework
Through one of her sources, Baden found out that The Booster Redux was at risk. She asked the team to work even harder to remedy this. Their discovery came from articles that dated back to 2012. The story that set off the alarm bells in their heads. They learned that the new school principal had links to the Dubai American Scientific School. The staff members now had to make a difficult decision.
Doing Their Homework
They Saw Red Flags
Based on the evidence, she was not fit to serve as the principal of the Dubai American Scientific School. Aside from that, the license of the school got suspended for unclear reasons. When she spoke to The Kansas Star, Baden said, “If students could uncover all of this, I want to know why the adults couldn’t.”
They Saw Red Flags
Learning More About Her
After learning more about this, the team behind the student paper worked hard to learn more about the principal. For three weeks, they looked into her background. What they learned only confused them some more. They had no idea how much she was hiding, although they were sure that she was not in any position to serve as the principal of the school.
Learning More About Her
Her Suspicious Qualifications
The student journalists worked on the story for weeks and scrutinized her qualifications as much as they could. According to her, she earned her master’s degree at Corllins University in Stockton, California. She did this online, although she occasionally visited the campus. When the students looked up the school, something did not add up.
Her Suspicious Qualifications
It Was A Scam
They were all confused because they could not find evidence of its existence. On top of that, the Better Business Bureau said that Corllins University was not accredited. Lastly, the institution did not seem to have a physical address. They learned that the college was accused of being a scam that hands out degrees to people willing to pay for them.
It Was A Scam
Shrugging It All Off
Even worse, the photos on the website of Corllins University came from the graduation ceremony of a different university. Robertson tried to shrug off these allegations from the youngsters, saying that the claims were “not based on facts.” When she talked to The Kansas City Star, she stated, “The current status of Corllins University is not relevant. When I received my MA in 1994 and my Ph.D. in 2010, there was no issue. All of my degrees have been authenticated by the U.S. government.”
Shrugging It All Off
A Front Page Story
No matter what she said, the editor of the student publication wanted to reveal the truth about Amy Robertson. There was no way they could just turn a blind eye to the inconsistencies of her story. The Booster Redux published an article about this topic on March 31, 2017. The story was on the front page of the publication. How did the principal react after seeing this?
A Front Page Story
The Truth About Her
“She was going to be the head of our school, and we wanted to be assured that she was qualified and had the proper credentials,” said Trina Paul when she spoke to The Kansas City Star. “We stumbled on to some things that most might not consider [to be] legitimate credentials.” A couple of days after this stunt, the board issued an announcement. What did it say?
The Truth About Her
She Decided To Step Down
It turned out that Robertson declined the job offer! “In light of the issues that arose, Amy Robertson felt [that] it was in the best interest of the district to resign her position,” Brown explained in the statement. In July, Robertson was replaced by Phil Bressler. However, there is one glaring question here. How come the board did not know of these anomalies in Robertson’s past?
She Decided To Step Down
The Blame Goes To…
According to Brown, he made an error and said that it was his fault. “I do feel it is my responsibility,” he informed The Kansas City Star. He went on, “As superintendent, I feel like I let the teachers and the students down. I publicly admit that.” The board started to look into changing its hiring process after this unfortunate incident.
The Blame Goes To…
They Were Young Heroes
Emily Smith, who serves as the student advisor, took pride in the tenacity of the student journalists. She claimed to be “very proud” of their efforts and hard work. She also wanted to clarify what the students were trying to do. “[The team was] not out to get anyone to resign or to get anyone fired,” she stressed. “They worked very hard to uncover the truth.” But what became of Robertson after this ordeal?
They Were Young Heroes
A Personal Anecdote
After The Booster Redux exposed her, more information about Amy Robertson came to light. According to a woman by the name of Paula Schneider said that they went to the University of Tulsa together. She said that Robertson used the social security numbers of different people to obtain fraudulent credit cards. When Schneider saw The Booster Redux article, she took to Facebook to share this piece of information.
A Personal Anecdote
One Of The Most Evil Women
“One of the most evil women I have ever known has been humiliated by a team of high school journalists,” she said in her post. Schneider went on, “I just hope the next time she’s in the news, it’s with the phrase ‘has been charged with…’ following her name.” Isn’t it neat to hear that the young students have made guest appearances in Inside Edition and Good Morning America? Todd Wallack of Boston Globe tweeted about this as well! The American Press Institute used this to say that “journalistic investigations can come from anywhere.”
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