On Feb 22 DC Public Schools (DCPS) Chancellor Kaya Henderson stripped Dunbar Senior High School (SHS) of their Turkey Bowl title for allowing an ineligible player to compete on their football team and in the tournament.
Dunbar Coach Joe Jerron has not yet replied to Examiner's request for comment.
Chancellor Henderson issued this statement:
'It is deeply disappointing to have to revoke this title from Dunbar, but it is even more disappointing that an ineligible player was playing on the team. We have high expectations and rules at DCPS, and that applies both in the classroom and in athletics.'
That statement is most ironic, considering that the runner-up, Anacostia SHS,
which also reached the game via disqualification, will not be awarded the title in the wake of Dunbar’s disqualification either.
This in fact marks the third eligibility infraction in five months for DC IAA football teams, and the fourth athletic scandal this academic year.
Wilson SHS was also disqualified from the Turkey Bowl shortly before the game when it was revealed that one of their football players was a Maryland resident.
In October, H.D. Woodson SHS coach Greg Fuller was fired after a DCPS investigation found an ineligible player competing on his team.
During Henderson's short tenure as Chancellor, DCPS has also been plagued with massive numbers of academic cheating scandals.
Hundreds of educators and administrators have allegedly cheated on various aspects of their students' standardized tests, which are controversially linked to their annual performance evaluations, job security, pay raises and salary bonuses.
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