William Fleming High School Principal Susan Willis broke her silence Monday evening after nearly five months of quietly fighting for her job.

A state report released in June accused Willis of spearheading an effort to manipulate the schedules of dozens of special education students to bolster the school's performance on state Standards of Learning tests. But Monday she said there are errors in the state Department of Education report that incriminated her.

One student, for example, did not take an SOL test because not testing was a condition of his Individualized Education Program -- not because of scheduling, Willis said. Other students dropped out or were in a juvenile detention facility when it was time to test, she said.

A three-person fact-finding panel spent nine days and countless hours at the end of the summer taking in testimony during Willis' grievance hearing at Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center. Wednesday is the deadline for the panel to make a recommendation to the Roanoke School Board regarding Willis' future as a division employee. The school board holds the ultimate decision-making power. Willis has been on paid leave since June.

"I don't know what the panel's going to do," Willis said during an interview at her home late Monday. "I don't know what the school board is going to do. I am fighting for my integrity, I am fighting for my good name, for everything I have devoted my life to."

Information obtained through the Virginia Freedom of Information Act indicates that the school system has spent more than $144,000 on legal fees, expenses at the hotel, airfare for a witness, and Willis' salary and benefits.

Willis declined to put a dollar figure on how much the battle has cost her.

"What price do you put on your name?" she asked.

Willis served as testing coordinator in Roanoke County before becoming Fleming's principal about four years ago. She said the outpouring of support from the Roanoke community has kept her going over the past five months.

"People see me in the grocery store and come up to say, 'We admire you for standing up and fighting this,' " Willis said.