6 expelled from elite school for cheating

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 27 (UPI) -- Six students have been expelled from an elite private school in Los Angeles for allegedly stealing copies of history and Spanish examinations.

Thomas Hudnut, the president of the Harvard-Westlake School, said that other students who saw copies of the stolen tests before they were administered will be suspended, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Teachers in the history department began to suspect cheating when some students got better-than-expected marks on world history and Europe II mid-term exams. A few days later, the department got an anonymous tip about cheating.

An investigation by the honor board, which includes student and faculty members, found that students allegedly stole the exams by distracting teachers. Hudnut said that the honor board decided on expulsion because the thefts were planned in advance.

Harvard-Westlake students typically outscore most of the country in the SATs and other tests. Hudnut said that in his 21 years at the school he has never heard of exams being stolen.