The president of the senior class at Cooper City High School was arrested Tuesday on charges that he used passwords he found to break into the school district computer system and change grades.
Ryan Shrouder, 18, faces two counts of a computer crime with intent to defraud, a second-degree felony after his arrest at school. He was released from the Broward County Jail after posting $5,000 bond. Each count is punishable by five years in prison.
The Broward School District suspended Shrouder for 10 days and is recommending his expulsion.
Shrouder gave himself and 19 classmates better grades, according to the arrest affidavit from the Broward Sheriff's Office.
Investigators said he made the changes with his laptop, which was issued to him by the school district for his role as an alternate student advisor to the Broward School Board. Shrouder found a list of district log-ons, user names and passwords on the desk of a school computer technology specialist in October, according to the BSO report.
He allegedly created additional sign-ons after that.
Acting Superintendent Jim Notter said student advisors are only given access to the districtwide e-mail communications system. But after Shrouder was given his computer on Sept. 20, the district's student records system was installed on his machine.
Shrouder's attorney said Tuesday he was disappointed at the school district's handling of the case. Officials could have punished Shrouder without an arrest, he said.
''This is a kid with a real future. I'm not excusing changing grades,'' attorney Jim Lewis said. ``It ain't a good thing. It ain't something where I think a kid should lose his whole future.''
Neither Shrouder, nor Cooper City High Principal Wendy Doll could be reached for comment late Tuesday. A district spokesman said other students may be disciplined.
Lewis said Shrouder was a good student.
''He had good grades on his own without changing any,'' Lewis said.
According to BSO, a classmate saw Shrouder change grades on Oct. 30 in a custodian's office and later that day in the school's student government affairs room.
School surveillance cameras recorded Shrouder with his laptop walking to the custodian's office that day. Then later, the video shows him coming out of the hallway where the student government office is, according to the arrest affidavit.
The video coincides with the time of grade changes recorded by the district's computer system.
Within hours, a guidance counselor preparing report cards for some of the school's 2,400 students noticed some students grades had jumped.
`FINGERPRINTS'
The next day, on Halloween, Shrouder went to the school office and asked about some grades that were changed.
''On this date and time, only four people in the entire staff of the school were aware that any grades had been changed, thus Shrouder was obviously aware of the grade change before it became public knowledge."
From the Miami Herald'
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