HARRISBURG, Pa. — Two former principals in the Philadelphia School District for allegedly changing answers on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment from wrong-to-right to boost test scores.

The arrests are the latest in the Office of Attorney General’s ongoing investigation into widespread cheating in the Philadelphia School District and elsewhere in the Commonwealth.

The Criminal Prosecutions Section presented evidence of criminal activity before a statewide investigating grand jury, which recommended the charges being filed yesterday against Barbara McCreery, 61, 7400 Old York Road, Melrose Park, Philadelphia and Arthur “Larry” Melton, 70, 103 Iron Master Road, Cherry Hill, New Jersey.

The grand jury found that Barbara McCreery, former principal at Communications Technology High School, created an answer key to change incorrect answers on the PSSA through and including the administration of the 2010 test, when the school’s math and reading scores increased exponentially.

Arthur Melton, former principal at Edward W. Bok Technical High School (“Bok”), also allegedly created an answer sheet he used to change wrong answers on the tests, which was demonstrated in PSSA scoring for Bok because test scores dropped after the practice ended.

According to the grand jury, Melton placed students into three groups based on how he believed they would perform: well, poorly, and those he referred to as on the “cusp,” and corrected answers for the latter group so the school would make Annual Yearly Progress.

McCreery and Melton were taken into custody Thursday, Sept. 25, 2014, and charged with one count each of: tampering with public records or information; forgery; and tampering with records or identification.

The case was referred to the Office of Attorney General by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. It will be prosecuted in Philadelphia by Senior Deputy Attorney General James Goldsmith of the Criminal Prosecutions Section.

Anyone with information regarding suspected cheating on standardized tests in Pennsylvania is encouraged to call the Office of Attorney General at 610-631-5987.

(A person charged with a crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty.)

Barbara McCreery grand jury presentment: https://www.attorneygeneral.gov/uploadedFiles/Press/2014_09_25_McCreery_Barbara_presentment.pdf

Arthur “Larry” Melton grand jury presentment: https://www.attorneygeneral.gov/uploadedFiles/Press/2014_09_25_Melton_Arthur_presentment.pdf