College Admissions Scandal: Felicity Huffman Arrested!

[Howl]

Is ASU Arizona State University in Flagstaff?  My ex went to grad school there. 

It also puzzles me because there are a bazillionty small liberal arts colleges too expensive for most people.  These kids could go to college in a lot of different places and still get a great education. 

And if these kids are too lazy to get good grades and prep for the SAT, what's going to happen when they are admitted to an academically demanding college?  Faculty will basically tell helicopter  parents to fuck off and aren't amenable to altering grades. 

Edited March 12, 2019 by Howl

[formergothardite]

4 minutes ago, Howl said:

And if these kids are too lazy to get good grades and prep for the SAT, what's going to happen when they are admitted to an academically demanding college? 

I was wondering that too. The kids obviously weren't able to get into college on their own so what the hell were the parents going to do when they got in there and couldn't handle the work? Did they continue paying off people to get their kids through college? 

[tabitha2]

The oldest story in the book... pay the smarter money desperate kids to write papers, do research and put together reports for them. And never ever doubt that dropping names and influential families soften the hearts of many a college board, esp if mummy went to prep school with the Buffy von uptight who is wife of Snooty MacSnooterson on the admissions board. 

[onekidanddone]

In today's example of White Privilege wealthy white people cheat to get their kids in school. This is hardly new or shocking. Look at the Trump Crime Family. You really think Daddy made it through skool school on his like really smart totally stable genius brain?

Edited March 12, 2019 by onekidanddone

[nausicaa]

1 hour ago, Mama Mia said:

So weird. If nothing else, the last few years have proven that being rich does not necessarily equal being bright.

There is a private women's college in my state that is ranked significantly behind our major public state colleges in basically everything--academics, job placement, athletics, internships, diversity, even socializing opportunities (in terms of big sports games, homecoming traditions, and sororities). I mean, I guess the campus is kinda cute looking? But people still pay more than 40k a year to send their daughters to it. Blows my mind constantly.

And everyone knows it's a bit of a joke of a school for rich dumb girls who bombed the SAT and just need to have their parents buy their way into school. But people will pay 160k for it, so...

[Ozlsn]

3 hours ago, Maggie Mae said:

And her name. Just like Hilton, Rothschild, Trump, Bush, Guinness, Vanderbilt, Rasmussen, names with recognition makes doors open. 

Well and an entirely networked publicity show. I don't actually know what Jenner allegedly sells, other than her family name. To me it's like whatever the hell Paris Hilton was allegedly selling (handbags?) - the product was irrelevant,  it was the connection to wealth/fame that she was actually selling.

Edited March 12, 2019 by Ozlsn

[tabitha2]

I don’t see it as a question of Race at this point  as we don’t know at all if there aren’t plenty more stars and business people involved.

No. It’s a Question of Greed, disgusting helicopter parenting, elitism, corruption, nepotism and just being terrible people. 

[JermajestyDuggar]

23 minutes ago, formergothardite said:

I was wondering that too. The kids obviously weren't able to get into college on their own so what the hell were the parents going to do when they got in there and couldn't handle the work? Did they continue paying off people to get their kids through college? 

I know a few college professors. These are the kids that have their parents constantly calling or emailing the professor making excuses for their child and asking for extended deadlines or extra credit. And then the kid flunks out because the professor doesn’t play their game. 

[Mama Mia]

8 minutes ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

I know a few college professors. These are the kids that have their parents constantly calling or emailing the professor making excuses for their child and asking for extended deadlines or extra credit. And then the kid flunks out because the professor doesn’t play their game. 

College just isn’t for everyone. I really wish more people would realize this. 

[luv2laugh]

18 minutes ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

I know a few college professors. These are the kids that have their parents constantly calling or emailing the professor making excuses for their child and asking for extended deadlines or extra credit. And then the kid flunks out because the professor doesn’t play their game. 

The kids will need high grades to get into the best graduate schools but sadly, earning the degree along with their family name and inherited social connections will take them far.

[AmazonGrace]

Memo to self: If someone calls and says, hey, remember that illegal fraud we did, you say "new phone who dis" and hang up.

[JermajestyDuggar]

6 minutes ago, luv2laugh said:

The kids will need high grades to get into the best graduate schools but sadly, earning the degree along with their family name and inherited social connections will take them far.

Oh yeah most of them end up fine. They “drop out” of one college that won’t play their game and go to another college. Or their parents can give them the money to open some new business venture. That may fail but oh well. Or they are just trust fund kids living their best lives on Instagram as influencers 

[seattlechic]

Damn damn damn damnnnnn.... whatwehavehere?????  Marking my spot. 

[AliceInFundyland]

The Jenners/Kardashians used everything they could. 

I’m kind of neutral on them because we the people bought into it. Kris Jenner managed the fuck out of that family and - it worked. She had wealthy husband A. They divorced. She married wealthy husband B. When KuK started - they were not living in a palace. 

She managed the fuck out of Kaitlyn’s motivational speaking career. Then she momager’d and leveraged the sex tape. The elder four appear to have some of that same strange work ethic. They don’t “do” anything exactly. But they are a brand. They see themselves as a brand. Especially Kim. She takes herself quite seriously. Showing up on time. None of them are big partiers or players. 

So they kind of bred Kylie. (Who “does” makeup) I’m unclear how that made billions. It’s very weird. And maybe she is a fuckup. I’m really not a fan. I just think there are worse people than them.

[VelociRapture]

Just in case anyone was wondering, my mom’s family is discussing this in our group text. (Side note: ages range from 28 to almost 87, so it’s pretty entertaining.)

- My grandpa brought up an interesting point though concerning the kids involved - parental coercion. He feels that many of them are very likely complicit, but might be so mainly due to parental pressures or threats. He thinks allowing schools to decide their fates on a case by case basis in which they have a chance to defend themselves could be the best path forward. He also said we should subpoena Trump’s SAT scores (have I mentioned my mom’s family, including my 86 year old lifelong Republican grandparents, hate Trump? ?)

- A relative who is a teacher said she would recommend those students voluntarily withdraw from their schools in order to avoid having an expulsion on their records. Their reputations and “prestige” would take a hit, but it wouldn’t necessarily ruin their lives if they decided they wanted to pursue an education elsewhere at some point.

- Another relative says they should be expelled and that they’ll be fine because they’re rich. He thinks it’d be a good learning experience for them. An uncle thinks they should be forced to watch every episode of “Full House” as punishment*.

*Which isn’t really a punishment until you get to those weird episodes at the end where Michelle gets amnesia.

Edited March 12, 2019 by VelociRapture

[AmazonGrace]

Anyway I don't get it. If you have busloads of money to blow on bribes, why not give that money to your child so they don't have to go to college.

[JermajestyDuggar]

3 minutes ago, AmazonGrace said:

Anyway I don't get it. If you have busloads of money to blow on bribes, why not give that money to your child so they don't have to go to college.

We talked about it earlier. It’s about the prestige. 

[Maggie Mae]

1 hour ago, formergothardite said:

I was wondering that too. The kids obviously weren't able to get into college on their own so what the hell were the parents going to do when they got in there and couldn't handle the work? Did they continue paying off people to get their kids through college? 

Well, the hope is that the kids "find themselves" and "have the experience." They don't need to go to school, most likely. Actually, they might. These might not be the ultra wealthy, these are just super wealthy people. These young adults need to meet and socialize with other people, maybe find something they are good at, or get married and have a lavish party. It's all about social status. And some of these people might not be safe at a regular state school. 

I just can't imagine being so devoid of interest in academic things. 

[Galbin]

The stars from my favourite TV shows are all possibly involved. Felicity? Lori? OMG is all I can say. 

[apandaaries]

2 hours ago, Howl said:

And if these kids are too lazy to get good grades and prep for the SAT, what's going to happen when they are admitted to an academically demanding college?  Faculty will basically tell helicopter  parents to fuck off and aren't amenable to altering grades. 

My alma mater is on the list: UCLA. And even back then, there were people who either weren't prepared or didn't want to study. So there were a number of ways they'd get around things. The frats and sororities there would pay their members to turn in work for certain professors, along with essays that had good grades.  The other members could access that work and turn it in as their own, and since TA's changed frequently, this plagiarism could go by often without notice. 

ETA: every finals season, streets would also be littered with people offering to write papers for fees. Now this is done online -- almost easier to cheat, in some ways, but especially if you have the money.

I knew an English major who told me he was afraid of big books. His mom had a PhD in lit.  Every time he had a paper, he'd call her up and she'd basically do the work. He read Heart of Darkness in college, and that's it. Because it was a small book. We have the same damn BA, and his is worth more because he's a white male (side note: I did not like this guy, if that's not obvious). 

I also had friends who went to Ivies, and they reported similar findings in the 90s. There were some smart AF folks who worked hard, and there were also some people who had absolutely had their parents pay for their admission. You could find every variety of intelligence there, from dumb as a rock to smart as a whip.  But that also usually clued one in on how that student got there.

I think the main difference here is that the guy running the show had the audacity to call it a non-profit, then engage in all those illegal activities. Normally, parents just pay a few million, like Jared Kushner's situation, then have their cherished offspring network and move to the top of society based on their artificial superiority. http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/03/jared-kusher-college-admissions-story-shady-but-legal.html This has been going on for awhile.

Edited March 13, 2019 by apandaaries

[QuiverFullofBooks]

If they can’t handle the work (and lots of elite colleges are easier to graduate from than to get into), they will drop out before they get kicked out and will claim that they “left Snooty University to pursue Fabulous Business Opportunity.”

[JermajestyDuggar]

1 minute ago, Maggie Mae said:

Well, the hope is that the kids "find themselves" and "have the experience." They don't need to go to school, most likely. Actually, they might. These might not be the ultra wealthy, these are just super wealthy people. These young adults need to meet and socialize with other people, maybe find something they are good at, or get married and have a lavish party. It's all about social status. And some of these people might not be safe at a regular state school. 

I just can't imagine being so devoid of interest in academic things. 

It really is the norm in a lot of these wealthy social circles. And since these parents have probably done everything but wipe their teens’ butts, the kids need somewhere to extend their childhood. They can’t go out and get a real job just yet. What better place than a college campus with a bunch of other over privileged kids? They don’t actually have to pay bills, cook, or work a job. If they make it to class most days and put in a little effort, they might actually graduate with a D average! I went to a state school and saw quite a few over privileged kids who weren’t even wealthy! They just had their parents do every damn thing for them. Some couldn’t even wash their own damn clothes! Their parents actually did it for them every weekend! 

[Maggie Mae]

1 hour ago, Ozlsn said:

Well and an entirely networked publicity show. I don't actually know what Jenner allegedly sells, other than her family name. To me it's like whatever the hell Paris Hilton was allegedly selling (handbags?) - the product was irrelevant,  it was the connection to wealth/fame that she was actually selling.

I realize that I am listing off several different types of wealthy people, but my point was the name recognition. The Kardashian/Jenner clan were famous for being famous, so they got a show and then name recognition, which they can then use to generate more wealth. The Hilton sisters used their name and reputation to generate more buzz around their clothing, handbags, reality TV show appearances, perfumes and books. Donald Trump's name is on buildings in many major cities and he was famous for being a rich playboy in the 80s, and his name recognition helped propel him to the presidency. I don't remember who else I listed, but I know that some people, like the Rothschild family (one of which is now married to Nicky Hilton) have a lot more money, slightly less name recognition among the pleb class, but if someone with that last name walked in our door right now looking like money, my boss would drop literally everything to suck up and hope for a donation. Same with a Rasmussen or a dozen other people who have recognizable last names.  Some are local, some are nationwide. 

11 minutes ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

 I went to a state school and saw quite a few over privileged kids who weren’t even wealthy! They just had their parents do every damn thing for them. Some couldn’t even wash their own damn clothes! Their parents actually did it for them every weekend! 

And in the wealthier schools, they just send the housekeeper/nanny to school to do the laundry for the young adult.  I knew people in school who just bought new clothes when theirs were dirty - and they weren't even remotely wealthy. 

Don't get me started about my feelings toward parents who contact professors/TAs/GAs/Administration about their ADULT children's grades/scholarships/financial aid/personality traits. CUT THE CORD. 

[JermajestyDuggar]

16 minutes ago, Maggie Mae said:

I realize that I am listing off several different types of wealthy people, but my point was the name recognition. The Kardashian/Jenner clan were famous for being famous, so they got a show and then name recognition, which they can then use to generate more wealth. The Hilton sisters used their name and reputation to generate more buzz around their clothing, handbags, reality TV show appearances, perfumes and books. Donald Trump's name is on buildings in many major cities and he was famous for being a rich playboy in the 80s, and his name recognition helped propel him to the presidency. I don't remember who else I listed, but I know that some people, like the Rothschild family (one of which is now married to Nicky Hilton) have a lot more money, slightly less name recognition among the pleb class, but if someone with that last name walked in our door right now looking like money, my boss would drop literally everything to suck up and hope for a donation. Same with a Rasmussen or a dozen other people who have recognizable last names.  Some are local, some are nationwide. 

And in the wealthier schools, they just send the housekeeper/nanny to school to do the laundry for the young adult.  I knew people in school who just bought new clothes when theirs were dirty - and they weren't even remotely wealthy. 

Don't get me started about my feelings toward parents who contact professors/TAs/GAs/Administration about their ADULT children's grades/scholarships/financial aid/personality traits. CUT THE CORD. 

Oh yeah. These were just upper middle class people! Wealthy people live lives none of us could truly wrap our minds around unless we saw it in person. 

[apandaaries]

16 minutes ago, Maggie Mae said:

And in the wealthier schools, they just send the housekeeper/nanny to school to do the laundry for the young adult.  I knew people in school who just bought new clothes when theirs were dirty - and they weren't even remotely wealthy. 

 

My mom went to USC on a full ride.

Spoiler

She was from Inglewood, CA -- NOT a wealthy place now, nor then. 

She had a very wealthy roommate her first year.  She remains traumatized from the time she came home from class on a Friday afternoon to see that her roommate had left for the weekend, leaving a used pair of dirty panties in the middle of their room. Absolutely no regard for others.