A former teacher in the Miami-Dade County, Fla., schools has been charged with running a company that granted teachers bogus credit for courses they needed to renew their licenses or teach additional subjects.
William McCoggle, a retired physical education teacher at Palmetto Senior High School, allegedly made more than $250,000 in his business, which in 2002 and 2003 featured a partnership with Eastern Oklahoma State College.
Also indicted last week in a separate matter was another former teacher, James Majors, who was alleged to have falsified his higher education credentials in 2002. He taught for one year in the Miami-Dade school system.
Both indictments were brought by a Dade County grand jury, which issued a report that found serious problems in how state and local education officials verify teachers’ records. The report estimated that 100 teachers were helped by Mr. McCoggle’s business, which allegedly ran no classes and gave no assignments.
Mr. McCoggle’s lawyer said his client plans to plead not guilty at an Aug. 8 arraignment. Mr. Majors could not be reached for comment.
