A Fort Lauderdale woman is facing multiple felonies after she allegedly took or tried to take exams required to receive an educator certification in Florida for numerous people, including Broward County Public Schools employees, the Florida Department of Education announced.
Kashaundra Knowles, 37, of Fort Lauderdale, was arrested on June 11 on charges of organized scheme to defraud, unlawful use of a two-way communication device and money laundering.
The investigation began in December 2024 after Pearson VUE, the global certification and licensing company that administers exams and testing, flagged a National Council of State Boards of Nursing candidate whose check-in photo for a nursing exam did not match her photos from nine previous exams, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The testing company investigated and found that “a proxy tester” who is not a nurse had taken the nursing exam for the candidate, and that same person took Florida Teacher Certification examinations for others between 2024 and 2026, the affidavit said.
The tester was identified as Knowles, who ran a tutoring business, Aced It Tutoring Services, according to the affidavit. Some clients had posted “disgruntled” messages on social media in the past about Knowles’ business, “who claim to have been victims of Knowles and label her as a fraud,” the affidavit said.
Palm vein recognition technology to verify identity is used at testing sites for the state education certification exams. Using data collected from an educator certificate exam in 2018 that Knowles took under her own name and comparisons of check-in photos, investigators found Knowles took or tried to take the exams for multiple women and one man, according to the affidavit.
“In each instance, check-in photos captured Knowles’ face instead of the registered candidate, and phone records showed direct coordination immediately before and after test appointments,” the state Department of Education said in a news release Thursday.
Kashaundra Knowles is seen impersonating a woman at two separate exam sites in 2025 in order to take to take
Exceptional Student Education K-12 exams on behalf of another person, according to a probable cause affidavit. (Screenshot of court record)
The news release said Knowles allegedly received passing scores for several people “whom are already employed by or seeking employment with Broward County Public Schools — thereby allowing unqualified individuals to secure or maintain teaching certificates they did not legitimately earn.”
School district spokesperson John Sullivan in a written statement Friday said four Broward County Public Schools employees were identified “who may be involved,” and the school district “immediately initiated our own internal investigation.”
“Any employee found to have violated District policies or professional standards will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination,” Sullivan said.
“Superintendent Dr. [Howard] Hepburn is appalled by these allegations and expects the highest standards of professionalism, integrity, and ethical conduct from every employee, especially those who work directly with our students,” the statement said. “The District remains committed to ensuring a safe, trustworthy, and accountable learning environment for all students and will take swift and appropriate action based on the findings of the investigation.”
The affidavit lists two Broward County schools employees who Knowles allegedly tested for: One is a teacher and Exceptional Student Education Support Facilitator at Westglades Middle School in Parkland, whom Knowles allegedly received a passing score for in August 2024.
The second is listed only as a school district employee in the affidavit, who Knowles allegedly impersonated during an exam at Florida Atlantic University in August 2024.
Knowles’ Facebook messages with clients were reviewed as part of the investigation, including messages where she discussed her prices for taking various tests and described completing college courses and taking GEDs, ACTs and SATs, nursing, real estate and insurance boards exams “and many more,” according to the affidavit.
In one message from July 2024, Knowles allegedly responded to a client about diplomas and test-taking that she “tests for everyone and sent pictures of herself testing for a male,” the affidavit said.
“That’s me testing for him (I have on a skully acting like a darn man) lol,” Knowles wrote in the message, according to the affidavit.
She also discussed options for proxy test-taking in Facebook messages, according to the affidavit, including an option for the client to “mail me your license, and I take your exams (most popular),” she wrote in one message.
In April 2025, Knowles was escorted out of a test center in Fort Lauderdale after attempting to take a test for a man who holds a non-renewable temporary reading certificate, who had last tried to test a few months earlier, the affidavit said.
Knowles was held in the Paul Rein Detention Facility as of Friday. Her defense attorney did not respond to an email seeking comment.
The court granted a request to lower Knowles’ bond last week. If she is released after posting bail, she will be placed on a GPS monitor, must surrender her passport and will be prohibited from using or having access to any devices that can access the internet, court records show.