Officials: Former East Lansing principal lied on resume, faked Wayne State transcripts
EAST LANSING – Former East Lansing High School Principal Shannon Mayfield lied on his resume and fabricated transcripts showing he had earned a doctorate degree from a Michigan university, acts school officials said they discovered just prior to his resignation earlier this month.
East Lansing Superintendent Dori Leyko and Chief Human Resources Officer Rulesha Glover-Payne met with Mayfield on March 7 at his home after determining the records were falsified, documents obtained Thursday by the State Journal through a public records request show. He resigned March 10, citing "ongoing health care and recovery as directed" in his letter of resignation obtained through a State Journal public records request.
An email Mayfield sent to Glover-Payne on Dec. 12 indicated he had completed a doctorate of education in ethical educational leadership from Wayne State University and included Wayne State transcripts and communications confirming the completion of the degree. District officials, after consulting with Wayne State's Registrar’s Office, learned he made up not only the degree but the name of an employee in the Registrar's Office who confirmed Mayfield had completed the degree, according to a memo Leyko sent to the school board.
“School leaders are offered an awesome opportunity to influence the growth of young adults - we have a responsibility to the students we serve to be role models and to exhibit the highest level of honesty and integrity,” Leyko said in a statement to the State Journal on Thursday. “East Lansing Public Schools has high expectations for its school leaders and for the character demonstrated through their actions.
"As demonstrated by the documents you received under the FOIA request, Mr. Mayfield’s actions did not meet the expectations we have for school leaders in this district. Our East Lansing High School staff and students are in good hands with the leadership team we’ve put in place for the remainder of the school year."
Mayfield, who joined the district as principal in July, could not be reached for comment Thursday. On Friday, he provided a statement to the State Journal that said he resigned because of injuries sustained breaking up a fight after a basketball game in January and a subsequent heart attack in February.
Mayfield did not directly address the allegations that he lied on his resume and fabricated transcripts.
"What led to my resignation are injuries sustained while breaking up a fight after a basketball game on the school campus and a recent heart attack on Feb 14," Mayfield said in Friday's email. "The claims you are referencing have not been formally addressed. With the health pieces ongoing, there are privacy and disclosure areas that preclude discussion."
His resignation happened during a challenging time for the district. Violence at the high school has been the subject of public meetings and the district has agreed to a number of changes, including returning security officers to the school and exploring bringing back a school resource officer.
Two on-campus high school fights happened in January, around the same time a district administrator was trying to confirm Mayfield's claims of receiving a doctorate degree to process a $4,000 stipend.
He had been on leave since Jan. 25. In January, then-East Lansing High School Assistant Principal Ashley Schwarzbek sent a communication to families to update their response to the recent concerns with violence in the high school. She wrote that Mayfield had been out with a “non-covid-related health issue.”
According to the memo Leyko sent the school board:
In his application for the principal position, Mayfield stated he had been attending Wayne State since September 2018 and expected to soon complete a doctorate degree.
On Jan. 9, after receiving the email in which Mayfield said he had earned the degree, Glover-Payne wrote to congratulate the principal on the completion of his doctorate degree. She also requested an official transcript and letter confirming completion of the program so that she could process a $4,000 stipend the degree made Mayfield eligible for.
Glover-Payne received what appeared to be Mayfield's Wayne State transcript on Feb. 27. It showed a doctorate of philosophy degree was awarded on Dec. 13, 2022, with a major in organizational leadership, not a doctorate of education in ethical educational leadership as mentioned in Mayfield's Dec. 12 email.
Glover-Payne scanned and forwarded a copy of the transcript and the envelope it was sent to her in to the Wayne State Registrar's Office. She requested the college verify the authenticity of the transcript. The administrative manager of the Wayne State Registrar's Office, Doris Davis, emailed Glover-Payne on Feb. 28 to notify her the transcript was not a Wayne State academic record and cc'd Registrar Kurt Kruschinska.
On March 1, Glover-Payne received another email from Wayne State, this time from Kruschinska, indicating the scanned transcript was not a Wayne State transcript.
Kruschinska wrote that the transcript wasn't legitimate for several reasons, including:
Wayne State transcripts are provided on green security paper or delivered as a green and white PDF
The watermark used on Wayne State transcripts is the university's seal, not a seal that says "Official Document"
The name of Wayne State Registrar Kurt Kruschinska appears on all transcripts. The transcript provided to Glover-Payne bears the name "Charles Bakersfield." Kruschinska said he had "no idea who Charles Bakersfield is or if they even exist."
Wayne State uses a four-digit course numbering system, unlike the three-digit course numbers included in Mayfield's transcript.
Mayfield's transcript references a Spring semester. Wayne State only has a Fall, Winter and Spring/Summer semester.
Additionally, Glover-Payne was told that the envelope that the fake transcript arrived in is not the envelope an official transcript would be sent in, according to the document. Additionally the envelope incorrectly includes Wayne State's Zip code as 48126. The envelopes also are not stamped, rather they are metered at the post office.
Leyko said she has consulted an attorney for guidance. At this time, “we are not pursuing legal action," she said.
Terah Chambers, president of the ELPS Board of Education, said the school board has been in communication with Thrun Law Firm, which serves as the district’s legal counsel.
"The East Lansing School Board was disappointed to learn about the actions of former ELHS Principal Shannon Mayfield that have come to light surrounding his recent resignation," she said. "As evidenced by the documents shared with LSJ, Mr. Mayfield did not uphold the standards that we hold for the school leaders who are ultimately responsible for the learning, safety and development of our students.
"We appreciate the swift response of our superintendent, human resources director and other members of our administrative team who thoroughly investigated the situation and implemented a transition plan to ensure consistent and effective leadership at the high school."
Leyko previously said Schwarzbek would remain as interim principal and Jeff Lampi as interim associate principal.
She announced Mayfield's resignation Monday.
Leyko concluded her memo to the Board of Education explaining that the district found two “substantiated acts of Mr. Mayfield’s dishonest and fraudulent actions...: Resume fraud: Mr. Mayfield submitted his resume and application in April 2022. His … application states that he has been attending Wayne State University since 2018 and expected to earn a degree in Ethical Leadership in 12/2023. Mr. Mayfield’s resume states that he was expecting to earn his Doctor of Philosophy in Ethical Leadership from Wayne State University in 2023.”
Leyko went on to explain Mayfield checked the box and electronically signed the portion of his application on April 28, 2022, that indicated all statements and information in the application was correct.
The second act Leyko listed was transcript fraud. “Mr. Mayfield submitted a falsified transcript for courses he did not take, grades he did not earn, and a degree he did not complete (or even start) at WSU.”
On Thursday, she sent an email to district staff:
"Good afternoon ELHS staff,
"Thanks to those of you who were available to come to the optional meeting after school – understandably, it was late notice and many of you have after-school commitments. So, I’m following up with this email communication to ensure that everyone has an understanding of the facts.
"I want to provide you some additional information regarding Mr. Mayfield’s resignation as it is likely to hit the media later today or tomorrow as a result of a FOIA request.
"In December, Mr. Mayfield communicated via email to our HR department that he had recently completed his doctorate degree. I didn’t learn about this communication until January. As typical protocol, our HR department requested documentation of this degree completion – an official transcript from the university. Administrators’ contracts provide a $4000 stipend upon completion of a doctorate degree.
"During the time between January 9 and February 27, 2023, our HR department remained in regular communication with Mr. Mayfield to provide guidance about how to obtain the transcript.
"On February 24, 2023, Ms. Glover-Payne, Chief Human Resources Officer, received confirmation from Wayne State University (WSU) that Mr. Mayfield had not earned any degree from their university and had not been enrolled as a student there since 1999.
"Subsequently, on February 27, 2023, our HR department received a Wayne State University transcript for Mr. Mayfield showing four semesters of coursework in 2021 and 2022 with an earned degree in Organizational Leadership. The registrar at WSU has confirmed that the transcript is fraudulent.
"Mr. Mayfield was provided due process as Ms. Glover-Payne and I scheduled a meeting with him last week to ask questions and offer him an opportunity to tell his story. He refused to answer our questions and submitted his resignation Friday.
"The Lansing State Journal has submitted a FOIA request since the announcement of his resignation Monday. We are fulfilling the FOIA request this afternoon.
"As an fyi… we did collect and verify appropriate certification upon hiring Mr. Mayfield. The notification of the doctorate degree was not sent to HR until December 2022.
"A few reminders:
• Do not comment on this issue – including on social media. It is a personnel issue. Board President Chambers and I will respond to all media requests and be the spokespeople for the District.
• Any media requests should be directed to my office.
• There are brighter days ahead for ELPS 😊.
Thanks - Dori."
According to his resume, Mayfield previously worked as an adjunct professor at the McCann School of Business and Technology in Pennsylvania from August 2016 to July 2018, Title I dean of students at Old Redford Academy Preparatory High School in Detroit from 2015 to 2016, turnaround principal for Overbrook High School in the School District of Philadelphia from 2013 to 2015 and as academic principal at William Allen High School in the Allentown School District in Pennsylvania from 2012 to 2013 and again from 2018 to 2021.
His resume additionally indicates that Mayfield was a federal air marshal in the Federal Aviation Administration in Atlanta from 1986 to 1991 and he was also a state trooper first class for the Georgia Department of Public Safety from 1983 to 1986.
Contact Mark Johnson at majohnson2@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ByMarkJohnson.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Officials: Former East Lansing principal lied on resume, faked Wayne State transcripts
