2 Students May Face Charges in Scheme to Alter Grade Records : Peninsula: School officials say the pair broke into the counseling office, while 12 others knew of the plot and did not report it.

Palos Verdes school officials said Wednesday that they have asked the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department to determine if two students accused of breaking into a high school office to change grade records should be prosecuted.

The students were among 14 who were suspended from Palos Verdes Peninsula High School in the past week for their roles in the grade-tampering scheme.

Among the students referred to law-enforcement officials was a 19-year-old high school senior whom school officials discovered was enrolled in the district illegally, Principal Kelly Johnson said. That student, who worked in the counseling office last year, has been dismissed from the district, Johnson said.

The senior and another student were the only ones whose cases were sent to the Sheriff’s Department because they actually broke into the counseling office last month, while the other 12 knew about the plot but did not report the incident, Johnson said.

In addition to five-day suspensions, all of the students will be denied letters of recommendation to college this year and in the future, Johnson said. They also will be dismissed from honor societies and will receive unsatisfactory marks in citizenship in all of the courses in which grades were altered, he said.

The break-in was discovered last week during a routine review of grade records, Johnson said.

School officials will send new transcripts and letters of explanation to the colleges and universities that received records with altered grades, Johnson said. Four of the students were college-bound seniors.

Johnson said he has been contacted by attorneys representing the parents of two students who believe the punishment is unjust. In one case, the parents knew about the grade change but did not report it, he said.

Although he acknowledged that denying letters of recommendation could jeopardize the students’ chances of getting into the colleges of their choice, Johnson said the disciplinary measures are necessary for the school to maintain its credibility.

“The victim is the school,” Johnson said. “We are all responsible for our actions and . . . I cannot control the consequences of their behavior.”