KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – A former guidance counselor who reportedly forgot to administer a state required test led to more than half the graduating class at Kalamazoo’s Phoenix Alternative High School last year to receive their diplomas despite not having met the Michigan requirements to graduate.
According to MLive, documents they obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request show that was just one of the problems that led to the students not taking the state-required M-STEP tests last spring.
Phoenix Guidance counselor Damon Chambers reportedly was the person responsible for administering the M-STEP test April 18 and April 19, 2023, with makeup dates in May. He has since resigned from the school district.
According to the MLive report, when scores weren’t sent to the state by May 18, a school official instructed Chambers to test as many students as possible the day before those scores were due.
Phoenix Alternative High School principal Mark Hill retired in August. Kalamazoo Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Darrin Slade was reportedly made aware of the problems just six days after taking the job in July, and ordered an investigation into the problems.
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