The final Great Neck student implicated in the second wave of arrests surrounding the SAT and ACT cheating scandal turned themselves in to the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office this week.
Great Neck North High School graduate Michael Pomerantz, 18, surrendered to District Attorney investigators on Monday morning for allegedly accepting cash payments to impersonate students to take the SAT and ACT standardized tests for them. He was arraigned on charges of scheme to defraud in the first degree, falsifying business records in the second degree and criminal impersonation in the second degree.
Pomerantz, whose lawyer Scott Klein did not return telephone calls seeking comment, was released on his own recognizance and is due back in court on Jan. 5. If convicted, he faces up to four years in prison.
A second student, who attends St. Mary’s High School in Manhasett, also surrendered Monday on misdemeanor charges for allegedly paying to have the test taken. That student’s identity was not released due to the state’s youthful offender law.
“Those are the final two of that second round of 13 arrests,” DA Deputy Director of Communications Chris Munzing said. “But, our investigation is ongoing.”
In September, Great Neck North graduate Sam Eshaghoff was the first student to be arrested for being paid to take the SAT test. The first round of arrests also included six other unidentified Great Neck North students who paid to have the standardized tests taken for them.
Then last week, 13 more students were arrested for taking part in the SAT and ACT cheating ring.
Great Neck North alum Joshua Chefec turned himself into authorities along with Great Neck South High School graduate George Trane and North Shore Hebrew Academy product Adam Justin for accepting payment to take the standardized tests.
In addition, nine other unidentified students were arrested last week for paying between $500 and $3,600 to those four students to take the test for them.
The second round of charges brought the total number of students involved in the investigation up to 20, with 15 previously or currently attending Great Neck High Schools.
Great Neck Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Thomas Dolan declined comment, citing the on-going investigation. But he did release a statement.
“It is our hope that the actions currently being taken by the District Attorney’s Office will serve to bring an end to any dishonest practices which may have placed students at an unfair disadvantage and will also bring to light any shortcomings in the security of the SAT testing system,” the statement read. “In light of the ongoing nature of this matter, the district will make no further comment at this time.”
The District Attorney’s office has not released the exact schools where the cheating on the standardized tests occurred, but the five students who were allegedly paid to take the tests did not do so in either Great Neck North or South high schools.
None of the 20 SAT cheating arrests would have been made possible, however, if not for the efforts of Great Neck Public Schools administrators, District Attorney Kathleen Rice said last Tuesday during a press conference in conjunction with the second round of arrests.
“To their credit, they then undertook the investigation that has brought us here in large part today,” she said
Great Neck Public Schools officials first came to the District Attorney’s office for help after learning of Eshaghoff’s activities, Rice said.
“They wanted someone to be able to deal with Sam Eshaghoff because he was no longer at the school,” the district attorney said of the student, who currently attends Emory University.
The second round of arrests later came to fruition due to some extensive work by District Attorney investigators.
“We did what you do in most criminal investigations,” Rice said. “We looked at documents. We looked at handwriting examinations. We spoke to witnesses and developed a case and identified more both test takers and test payers.”
The investigation into SAT and ACT cheating is ongoing, Rice said.
Dolan said the Great Neck School District will also remain active in seeing all students past and present involved in the cheating ring be brought to justice.
“The Great Neck School District has been cooperating with the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office regarding an incident of reported cheating on the SAT,” Dolan’s statement said. “Needless to say, the Great Neck School District does not tolerate cheating and we remain committed to cooperating with law enforcement in this matter.”
