Investigation into Terry Sanford grade changes complete; principal resigns

Fayetteville, N.C. — The principal at Terry Sanford High School has resigned following an investigation into grade changes and athletic eligibility at the school, Cumberland County Schools said Monday.

Principal Diane Antolak’s resignation was accepted on Friday, according to a press release.

Antolak was suspended with pay in November while Cumberland County Schools investigated her for possibly tampering with a transcript. As a result of that investigation, information came to light about a player on the football team who was found to be ineligible, according to Cumberland County Schools.

The football team was forced to forfeit its nine regular-season wins after the school reported the use of the ineligible player. Despite the decision from the North Carolina High School Athletic Association, an attorney representing some of the players was able to win a temporary injunction allowing the team to play in the first round of the 4-A playoffs.

Superior Court Judge Jack Thompson, a 1959 graduate of Fayetteville High School, the forerunner to Terry Sanford High, later upheld the NCHSAA's ruling negating the team's playoff win.

The school’s acting principal, Mindy Vickers, and guidance counselors will be contacted to correct individual student situations over the coming week, officials said Monday.

Cumberland County Schools is preparing a report for the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.

No further athletic eligibility issues need to be addressed, officials said.

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"Athletics over education"? Read the story carefully and you'll learn that this isn't the situation. The story states that the list of students whose grades were changed were not athletes. To this point the only mention I have seen of an athlete's grade being changed was the one kid on the football team who has been the focus of the reporting. If you want the true picture of the correlation between athletics and education you should check out the research that has been done which proves that athletes, as a group, perform much better than non-athletes in high school. Of course we wouldn't want anyone to let the facts get in the way of their dislike of high school athletics.

Justabum
March 9, 2010 4:18 p.m.

Does this mean she gets promoted to Central Office with the other failed principles?

southern wisdom
March 9, 2010 1:03 p.m.

"I see thugs on street corners everyday selling dope right out in front of God and everyone and nobody puts forth the effort to stop them. drh3102"

And what have you personally done other than gripe? Let me guess. It's not your job. Followed closely with, where's mine? Try this on. By leaning early (while still in school) that's there's no free ride, maybe he won't sell drugs on the street corner, looking for a quick buck.