Math teacher facing discipline over test

By Emily Richmond (contact)

Wednesday, Aug. 11, 2004 | 10:54 a.m.

A veteran Clark County School District math teacher is expected to have his license suspended for nearly half an academic year as punishment for distributing to his students questions from the state's High School Proficiency Exam.

Steven Degelbeck, hired by the district in 1977, is alleged to have copied portions of the test during the April 2003 round of the math proficiency exam and used the questions to create a worksheet, according to a complaint filed by the Nevada Department of Education. Students must pass the reading, writing and math portions of the exam in order to receive high school diplomas.

The State Board of Education must approve the recommended 80-day suspension, which comes as part of a negotiated settlement. State education officials initially sought to have Degelbeck's license revoked.

Degelbeck, who was scheduled to return to Western High School when classes begin Aug. 30, would be the second Clark County teacher this year to be punished for mishandling proficiency test materials. Former Desert Pines High School teacher Ronald J. Williamson had his license revoked in May after providing his students with an advance look at the April 2003 math proficiency exam.

At Saturday's meeting the state education board will also consider a 20-day suspension of the licenses of Ronald Voss, a math teacher at Sparks High School. Voss, like Williamson and Degelbeck, is charged with violating test security during the April 2003 round of the math proficiency exam.

According to the state education department's complaint, another teacher observed Voss copying -- and answering -- questions from the test booklet while students took the exam in the same room. Teachers and proctors are not supposed to see the exam's contents.

Because Degelbeck distributed the test questions to students, state education officials decided the lengthy suspension was warranted, Rheault said.

Degelbeck told investigators he gave his students copies of the homemade worksheet for them to "complete as an assignment hoping to improve their chances to pass the May 2003 exam," according to the settlement agreement.

The suspension, if approved by the state board, would likely take effect "immediately," Rheault said.

Degelbeck's license is set to expire Dec. 4 of this year. He could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

George Ann Rice, associate superintendent of human resources for the district, said she was awaiting notification from the state as to the status of Degelbeck's license. He is currently assigned to return to Western when classes begin Aug. 30.

Voss faces the least-severe punishment because he did not attempt to share the the test contents with students, said State Schools Superintendent Keith Rheault.

"We look at each case individually and determine the damage, along with the potential for harm," Rheault said. "If we needed to invalidate an entire round of the test because of a teacher's improper actions it would have serious financial implications for the department."

In a written apology to the Washoe County School District, Voss explained that it had not been his intention to "discredit test security" but his curiosity got the best of him.

"As a math teacher, math questions are very interesting to me," Voss wrote. "Just like English teachers like to do crossword puzzles, I like to do math problems ... I am very sorry for my actions and this will not happen again."