Katelin Graham

Ms. T

English 2010

11 April 2019

Between the Lines of Cheating

Cheating has been around since the beginning of time. Royal brothers have killed their

way to the throne. Parents have deceived their way through relationships. Students have copied

their way to amazing grades. Everyone cheats, but how far is one willing to go? How far would

one be willing to pay? In today's day and age, college is a major priority. Students study hard for

standardized tests, and they work hard to maintain high GPAs just to get into college. Young

teens apply for multiple institutions, and they keep their fingers crossed to see if they get in. That

is how college admissions has been conducted for decades, supposedly.

Recent discoveries have found nearly 50 wealthy parents paying for their children to be

accepted into ivy league and other top ranked schools. Many universities have been accused of

letting students

cheat their way into

college, but now

evidence is also

finding parents

bribing their kids

way in. The scandal

includes bribes with

college coaches, exam administrators, and admission counselors. University of Southern

California is at the center of this scandal followed by Stanford, Georgetown, Yale, Columbia,

Princeton, Harvard, and UCLA. Many other colleges are involved, but there has not been secure

proof recorded. Among the 50 parents who allegedly paid money to ensure admission are actors

Felicity Huffman (from ​Desperate Housewives​) and Lori Loughlin (from ​Full House​). It is a

shocking example of how far parents are willing go for the prestige of certain schools.

Huffman and her husband have been indicted by the Justice Department for spending

nearly 25 million dollars in bribes. The article “What Is the College Admissions Scandal”

published by Marie Claire and written by Cady Drell says, “Huffman allegedly disguised a

15,000 dollar bribe as a charitable donation in order to have their daughter participate in a scam

to cheat on the SAT” (Drell para 5). On the other hand, Loughlin and her husband allegedly paid

500,000 dollars to get her two daughters as recruits for USC’s rowing team despite the fact that

neither of them are athletic. How exactly did these two actresses accomplish this? They had

extreme help from William Singer. Drell continues to write, “Singer ran a phony counseling

service that helped wealthy parents get their children into elite schools by any means necessary,

be it cheating on tests or directly bribing coaches and administrators” (Drell para 7). Many other

individuals have been caught racketeering which is repeatedly using a business to gain illegal

money.

The massive college case was accidentally discovered by another unrelated undercover

operation. Finance executive Morrie Tobin was under investigation for security fraud. Tobin

tipped Deputies off suggesting a connection between Yale’s soccer coach admissions rate and
bribes. The soccer coach worked with William Singer. The discovery of Singer’s involvement

led to many other cheating investigations.

Park and Karimi report on other university circumstances in the article “Here’s what

universities are saying about the alleged college admissions cheating scandal” published by

CNN. Universities were “surprised” to discover the many dishonest admissions, but some

individuals believe the universities knew what was going on and chose to do nothing. It is

understandable to why ivy league schools would turn a blind eye to the issues. Acting on the

controversy would create a madhouse of problems The college admission scandal has blown up,

and now institutions can no longer ignore their problem. Evidence has been released to the

media, and universities have a demanding problem on their hand. Action must be taken.

University of Southern California fired their athletic director and water polo coach. Their plan is

to use any money received in the connection with the scheme to fund scholarships for

disadvantaged students. USC is reviewing current enrollment decisions, and all applicants

connected to the cheating scam will be denied. So far six students have been identified in the

current admissions cycle (Park and Karimi). Many other coaches and athletic directors have been

fired, and universities have claimed to strengthen the admissions process. One step all

universities are taking is investigating the audits of its athletic departments. They are going to

analyze recruited students to see whether or not they are rightfully on the roster for the sport they

were recruited for. Universities have started to take a stand, but they cannot fully take action

until court dates and charges have fully passed.

Many students were not aware that their acceptance into college was not the result of

their hard work but because of their parents. Most actions being taken by schools will affect
students when in reality they had no knowledge this was going on. Students currently being

investigated have an academic hold that prevents them from registering from any classes or

acquiring transcripts. Some universities have considered revoking their degrees. On the other

hand, parents are being prosecuted and charged in court. Court dates have been scheduled, and

the first round of parents made court appearances beginning of April. No conclusions have been

made on this case, and additional court hearings will be held throughout summer.

The college admissions scandal has also sparked the topic of Affirmative Action.

Affirmative action is when colleges favor minority or ethnic groups, but some individuals have

speculated that after institutions reach their “limit” they actually discriminate against minorities.

The article “As College Apps Are Due, Asian-American High Schoolers Consider Affirmative

Action” written by Kat Chow discusses the Asian-America view of admissions. Students of all

backgrounds have attempted to sue Harvard University for discrimination. “A federal judge is

weighing a decision, one group that’s watching this case closely are Asian-American high school

seniors” (Chow para 5). When properly used, Affirmative Action is used to help alleviate the

hard impacts of discrimination. Today, this discrimination program has been shown to ache high

achieving students. Many high schools have advised Asian-American students to not check their

ethnic box, and research has shown that these students have a higher chance of getting admitted.

Nobody would have foreseen the academic chaos present in today’s world. Higher

education in America has always been rigged for the wealthy. Opportunities are not equal for

every ethnic background. The ultimate question is “Are teens adequately prepared for college?”

In all honesty, the answer is no. Parents and students feel the need to cheat their way into college

because they are not prepared. Nobody is going to be 100 percent ready for their future, but one
is required to take a leap of faith and expose themself to a new world. After conclusions have be

made regarding the college scandal and Affirmative Action, one must be ready to adapt to an

ever impending education.

 Works Cited

Chow, Kat. “As College Apps Are Due, Asian-American High Schoolers Consider Affirmative

Action.” ​As College Apps Are Due, Asian-American High Schoolers Consider Affirmative

Action,​ NPR. 2018. Web. 23 April 2019.

Drell, Cady. “All The Questions You Had About That College Admissions Scandal, Answered.

”​Marie Claire,​ Marie Claire. Mar. 2019. Web. 23 April 2019.

Hemps, Will. “Investigations of College Admissions and Testing Bribery Scheme.” ​The United

States Department of Justice​. 2019. Web. 23 April 2019.

Park, Madison, and Faith Karimi. “Universities React to the Alleged College Admissions

Cheating Scandal.” ​Here's What Universities Are Saying about the Alleged College

Admissions Cheating Scandal,​ Cable News Network. March 2019. Web. 23 April 2019.