‘Deeply troubling’: Former Mass. DCF worker posed as student in Boston high schools

BOSTON — A 32-year-old woman who used to work for the state of Massachusetts fraudulently enrolled as a student in multiple high schools in Boston using false identification and paperwork during this academic year, officials said Tuesday.

The woman, who has not been identified, “has been discharged and is being ordered to stay away from Boston Public Schools,” BPS Superintendent Mary Skipper said in a letter to the school community.

At various times during the 2022-2023 school year, the woman attended Jeremiah E. Burke High School, Brighton High School, and English High School while using the student transfer process and enrolling under multiple pseudonyms, according to Skipper.

Last week, a Boston Public Schools staff member noticed irregularities in the paperwork on file and reported it to school leaders, “who immediately contacted Boston Police,” Skipper said.

Boston 25 was also able to confirm that the woman in question formerly worked for the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families from December 2021 through February 2023.

“While the investigation is in its early stages and remains ongoing, school officials have not identified any incidents of harm to students or staff,” Skipper said. “At this time families of students who may have interacted with this individual are being contacted directly by school staff and investigators.”

In a separate statement on the matter, Skipper called the incident a “breach of trust.”

“I am deeply troubled that an adult would breach the trust of our school communities by posing as a student,” Skipper said. “This appears to be a case of extremely sophisticated fraud. As soon as BPS personnel identified irregularities with the student’s enrollment, the case was referred to the Boston Police who are now undertaking a criminal investigation. I am grateful to the BPS staff who caught this and quickly acted and to the Boston Police for launching an immediate investigation.”

An investigation into the woman’s alleged actions and how she was able to enroll remains ongoing.

Boston police investigating adult who fraudulently enrolled in city schools, BPS superintendent says

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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