OSG High: Grady High Investigation Stage 1 Opens

((HT: 11Alive.com))

This investigation started back in November when the Atlanta Public School system received an anonymous tip about address fraud involving football players at Grady-Atlanta High School.

Sources close to both OSG Sports and Grady High have long known that this is one of those elephants in the room- and the investigation discloses that of 58 students investigated almost half have had false documents verified or are still under investigation to determine the legitimacy of the documents provided.

Here's the multi-reporter look at the multi-page document
The fraud is somewhat ingenious in the lengths that school officials, parents, and athletes will go to allege being a part of the Grey Knight family... The head of the Atlanta Public School System, Superintendent Erroll Davis, broke it down and parents are less than pleased at what some are calling a witch hunt. Since, the investigation began, a number of players have withdrawn from the school voluntarily, and others have been asked to leave. If it was discovered that a student lived outside the geographic area of Grady, tuition bills were sent to parents. Davis said at least one player had never seen the inside of a Grady High School classroom. Here's the highlights of the town hall meeting Davis had with the Grady community...

OSG High: Address Fraud Confirmed In Atlanta Football Program

((HT: 11Alive.com, WXIA-TV))

As OSG Sports first reported a week ago, the Atlanta Public Schools investigation into Grady High School and its football program has unveiled duplicate addresses for athletes who claimed to have lived in the district when they, in fact, did not...

Up to 20 players addresses were in question when an anonymous tip was called into APS in early November.

Here's part of the release from APS Superintendent Erroll B. Davis, Jr.

After interviewing the majority of the parents and guardians of the Grady High School Football team, APS has conclusive evidence of address fraud. Specifically, we have confirmed that parents falsified enrollment affidavits for students who live outside of the Grady attendance zone, and in some instances, outside of the city of Atlanta. The interviews also revealed additional issues that warrant further investigation.

Players who were fraudulently enrolled will be required to leave the school. Parents who falsified enrollment affidavits are subject to reimbursing the district tuition of up to $10,000 per school year, as well as other legal consequences that may be pursued.

While parents are ultimately responsible for false affidavits, there are issues of institutional control that must be addressed before we conclude this investigation. Integrity is paramount, and we want to send a message that false affidavits have academic, personnel, financial and legal consequences that are simply not worth it.

This remains an ongoing investigation that will continue after the winter break.

Here's the latest from the TV side...

The Georgia High School Association will now get to decide if the athletes will be eligible in their home districts...
Head football coach Ronnie Millen, Junior is still reassigned...

OSG sources close to the Grady situation still maintain it wasn't the first time of an event like this...and won't be the last...

OSG High: How Not To Recruit... Allegedly...

((HT: AJC.com/Niesse))

Grady (Atlanta, GA) High School has had its ups and downs when it comes to the football program...

There have been playoff berths, but there have also been growing pains in between... as a matter of fact, Erk Russell coached the Grey Knights to their only state title in 1953...

Yes, THAT Erk Russell...
Anyway, the HQ digresses...

The 2013 season finished up with an 8-3 record under Ronnie Millen- who had been the coach since 2001...

Here's Grady's final game of the 2012 season- a playoff loss to Monroe Area...
((HT: NFHS Network))


But the City of Atlanta is now investigating the allegation (made anonymously, of course) that as many as 20 players falsified their addresses to play for Millen...

Millen has been transferred out of the school because of the investigation...

“We depend on the integrity of parents who have an ethical obligation to the district to provide accurate addresses to the district,” School Superintendent Erroll Davis said as he announced the investigation. “However, our commitment to ethics is higher than any individual program.”

The biggest issue of the whole investigation is: Why and how did the parents/guardians/coaches/administrators/anyone involved in the process (allegedly) think that filing duplicate addresses wouldn't get past the city gatekeepers and send up red flags in their investigation in the first place...???

Students found to have violated the geography rules could be transferred back to their native school districts and any athlete with a scholarship to a college could have that in jeopardy as well...

The Georgia High School Association has been notified of the City investigation and may hand down separate penalties of their own once the initial investigation is complete...

OSG sources familiar with the situation at Grady say this has been a fairly common occurrence in the past with athletes using either the addresses of relatives or outright fake addresses to take advantage of what has been characterized as the best school in the Atlanta Public School system- even when it was just a base for the magnet program...