RantCrush Top 5: April 6, 2017

Journalism students at Pittsburg High School in Kansas have bright futures ahead of them. The group of students made national headlines when their principal resigned from her new $93,000-a-year-job after they dug into her background and found some questionable credentials. The students found that Corllins University, where principal Amy Robertson got her master’s and doctorate degrees, is not what it claims to be. Department of Education officials couldn’t find any evidence that the university was ever in operation. However, the students found many articles referring to Corllins as a school where you can buy a degree.

They’re in high school in Kansas, but they’ve committed some really grownup journalism. @schmidtsam7 https://t.co/5iPAkwQ42q

— Nina Bernstein (@NinaBernstein1) April 5, 2017

One of the students, Maddie Baden, said that they started their investigation after an online search of Robertson’s name showed that she was the principal of a school in Dubai that lost its license for failing the annual school inspection four years in a row. The students’ journalism adviser Emily Smith said she is “very proud” of them. Robertson said she didn’t want to comment since the students’ “concerns are not based on facts.”

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.