@got2laugh My daughter goes to public school and did not have testing accommodations. She has told me that friends that transferred to elite private boarding schools got testing accommodations with no problem, no special arrangements or history of learning problems.
Funny. I’ve recently completed watching the whole 20-episodes of “Sky Castle,” which was produce in 2018 and is the highest-rated drama in Korean cable television history. The drama is a satiric look into how and to what extent the Korean wealthy class is willing to use their money to buy, cheat and to manipulate the system in order to have their kids admitted to the most coveted elite colleges. Yes, there’s the mastermind in this drama, too, a female counterpart to William Rick Singer. She ends up serving a long jail time as I’m sure Singer will, as well. One of the main characters’s daughter, too, didn’t know that her test has been tampered with behind her back to reflect a much higher score. Now, the real “Sky Castle” is unfolding before our very eyes in this country. The drama has become very popular in China, too, where they have a similar educational system as in Korea and, of course, the corruption that comes with it.
And this is exactly why some parents are cheating the system by getting their ‘non-deserving’ kids’ time constraints removed.
Don’t be so sure he will receive that much jail time…
Law enforcement source IDs government’s key cooperating witness
From CNN’s Mark Morales
Cooperating witness number one referenced throughout the criminal complaint is William Rick Singer, according to a law enforcement source.
Bets on no jail/prison time for anyone? I see fines and probation and community service [TV star makes PSA]. Sorry to be so cynical.
I too think it certain that the students willingly participated. The complaint describes the rigging of scores, kids who could barely get 22 on the ACT decided if they wanted a 32 or 34 instead. Hard to believe their high schools weren’t suspicious as well.
@tif1972 –
It is actually pretty difficult to get time accommodations on the SAT/ACT. Usually requires proof and track record going back many years of testing, diagnosis, therapy and accommodations (like 504 plans) from the middle and high school.
So the fact is that families with time/resources/knowledge are going to be more likely to be on top of this early and therefore more likely to be able to produce the many years of files needed to get the extra time. Parents with less resources and knowledge are less likely to bring a convincing case file (which doesn’t come cheap).
In this fraud case, my hunch is that the accommodation file was fraudulent. Since getting the kid into a separate and secluded test room was necessary in order to facilitate getting the test tampered with.
I doubt that this was parents being extra aggressive advocates so that their borderline LD kids could really take the test themselves but just have the benefit of the extra time.
P.S. Once a kid with a legit LD gets into a selective college, it is no party. While the school can give kids more time to take exams, they can’t give the kid more hours in the week. If a smart kid is a legit slow processor, he’s basically in a race with a lot of other kids who are also smart but who are FAST processors. So it is a difficult decision about whether it really is best to put your kid into such a fast race. It can be a very tough and dispiriting slog for the kid. Sometimes an easier school or an easier major makes more sense. Good luck.
“And this is exactly why some parents are cheating the system by getting their ‘non-deserving’ kids’ time constraints removed”
Agreed - like another poster pointed out, just like he parents who used to get waived through the lines at Disney by pretending that their kid was in a wheel chair.
Lori Loughlin’s daughter Olivia emphasized in multiple interviews that her parents, who never attended college, wanted her and her sister to go. Olivia was “attending” because they wanted her to, not because she wanted to.
I believe in the complaint hers was the family where the dad told CW-1 they just wanted to have an option besides ASU and USC was a target at least partly because CW-1 had connections there/had done this before.
@AboutTheSame The parents you mean? Many, if not most, of the insiders will likely see jail time. But you could be right about the parents.
This really doesn’t surprise me. As a student, I have been well aware of this and didn’t actually know it was a crime or anything to bribe your kids into college. It was something I grew up aware of, not because it was happening in my community, but because it seemed obvious (I mean, come on, did anyone think Aunt Becky really had a genius kid, able to outdo everyone else applying to USC?).
In theory, millions of parents have “bribed” their student’s way into college, and not just the 1%. Think of coaches who have connections with certain university athletic programs or parents who golf with the director of admissions. While they didn’t shell out cash, they still gave their students (or athletes) an unfair advantage against others.
It’s hard on our end because, as a member of the middle class, college is pitched as this way to leave your roots behind and become to next Zuck or Gates or Obama. We are told we have to go where they have the most cited professors or largest alumni base or best name value. But getting into these colleges is stacked against those who don’t have the connections or $$$. Hopefully more parents will stop breaking their backs to send students to these “world renowned” institutions and instead instill in them the work ethic to thrive anywhere they may attend.
I wish the best of luck to everyone applying to these prestigious universities. I’m sorry the system is broken, but these revelations really aren’t too shocking to me…
I suspect this is really deeper than what/who is being reported and really just attends to those currently “caught”. Also regarding the celebs, this is a time when being a celeb hangs you - I’m sure there are plenty of people non-famous but $$-rich who have joined in the madness.
Potentially just the tip of the iceberg. And sort of, no one should really be that shocked. It’s just the college “game” to another level.
Just checking for clarity…
Singer is blowing the whistle on himself?
One of the parents is an associate at a fairly famous law firm. He might not see jail time but he’s sure going to see career consequences.
It is difficult to get accommodations. My D has several learning disabilities, and I recall (this is a few years ago) that we needed to send in the neuro-psych report from extensive, expensive testing that outlined the exact diagnoses and accommodations recommended by the psychologist. For either the SAT or ACT (can’t remember which), the guidance counselor had to send in the extra time request with the backup materials to get 50 percent extra time. So there are several layers of safeguards, which were clearly circumvented here.
The current scandal is very disappointing, but an interesting look at just how the rich are different from you and me.
@thumper1 , it was only two testing centers so easy to get a cooperating proctor who presumably was also a SAT/ACT tutor? May not have had the model answer but would have pretty much known what was correct?
@TheBigChef , agree re time for ACT. My D ran out of time on the math section of ACT both times she did it, but had scored almost perfectly on what she had completed. But… you can’t just give people unlimited time to do tests, ACT or others imo. It’s just a shame the accommodation system is abused.
I am not sure Singer was blowing the whistle on himself, which implies he consciously came to report this on his own. More likely, the Feds had some of the goods on him, brought it to him and his lawyers, and offered him a deal - they convinced him that if he told more and filled in the gaps, they’d ask the judge to treat him easy, but if he did not, they’d push for the harshest punishment possible on all counts. So he folded.
“Bets on no jail/prison time for anyone? I see fines and probation and community service [TV star makes PSA]. Sorry to be so cynical.”
Most will probably avoid jail, but the two actresses can probably kiss their careers goodbye. The coaches who outright accepted bribes may see some jail time. One guy - Gordon Caplan - who is the chairman of a white shoe law firm, will have to resign from his firm and will end up getting disbarred if he pleads to a felony. He will get a significant suspension at least and his legal career is probably over. Some of these parents will see their kids get expelled and all of them have humiliated both themselves and their kids.
He is a “cooperating witness.” So, yes, but with hopes of getting the best deal first.
Earlier, the reference was made that the investigation of this was stumbled on as they were investigating something else. I wonder if the other investigation was the one about payoffs to college athletes or their families, from shoe companies, etc.