Superintendent Accused of Plagiarizing Mass. Governor

Newton Superintendent David Fleishman has been docked a week's pay after he reportedly admitted to using parts of a speech given by Deval Patrick

(NECN: Katelyn Flint) - A Massachusetts school superintendent is in trouble for allegedly plagiarizing a speech by the state's governor.

Newton Superintendent David Fleishman has been docked a week's pay after he reportedly admitted to using parts of a speech given by Governor Deval Patrick.

Students at Newton South High School were paying close attention during last month’s commencement ceremony. Recent graduates have called out Fleishman for plagiarizing the graduation speech.

According to the Boston Globe, Fleishman is being fined for plagiarizing the speech made by Patrick.

The former students wrote about the realization in a special edition of the school’s newspaper, saying they recognized much of what Fleishman was saying from a speech they heard at Boston’s University’s ceremony given by the governor.

The paper even breaks down both speeches, pulling a number of lines they say were very close to identical.

Fleishman is facing a $5,000 fine and released a statement saying he should have cited the governor and that he was the one who requested action be taken by the school committee.

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