A 22-year-old Forest Lake man who attended classes at White Bear Area High School last month skirted around the enrollment process by claiming he was a homeless youth and by using a birth certificate from another country that indicated he was 18, the school district said Thursday.
White Bear Lake Area Schools Superintendent Wayne Kazmierczak said in an email to families that the man certified on district forms that he was a homeless unaccompanied youth, a designation that requires school districts to follow the McKinney Vento Act. The federal law mandates the immediate enrollment of eligible students even if they cannot provide standard documentation such as academic records, immunization or proof of residency.
The birth certificate, which listed a fake name of Kelvin C. Perry Jr., included an authentic watermarking and official stamps/seals, Kazmierczak said, adding there “was no indication that the document was anything less than authentic.”
The man was enrolled in the district from Sept. 3 to 29, when he was arrested on warrants in connection with unrelated cases, including violating probation in a 2023 case in which he was convicted of gross-misdemeanor indecent exposure for sending a 15-year-old girl a nude picture of himself through Snapchat.
On Thursday, he admitted in court to the probation violation, according to court records, which do not disclose what the violation entailed.
The man also registered for football on Sept. 8 and participated in three practices, according to Kazmierczak. “He did not play in games or travel with the team to any away games,” he said.
He remains jailed but not charged in the school enrollment case. White Bear Lake Police Chief Dale Hager said Thursday investigators are pursuing possible crimes related to fraud, forgery and unlawful conduct involving interaction with minors.
Dennis Gerhardstein, a spokesman for the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office, said Thursday a case has been presented against the man and is under review for possible charges.
The Pioneer Press generally does not identify suspects before they are charged.
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Forest Lake 22-year-old played football, attended school at White Bear Lake
Kazmierczak’s email to families comes two days after State Rep. Elliott Engen pinned the blame on the superintendent, calling into question the district’s enrollment verification protocols, student safety measures and administrative oversight.
Engen, R-Lino Lakes, whose district includes communities served by the White Bear Lake school district, also called for Kazmierczak’s immediate resignation.
Kazmierczak said the district will review its enrollment “procedures to determine whether additional safeguards can be implemented without violating the McKinney-Vento Act or guidance from the U.S. and Minnesota Departments of Education.”
Kazmierczak acknowledged the “staff, families and students who came forward with information that led to our investigation and swift action to revoke this individual’s enrollment.”
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