What are we willing to do to get into that perfect school? Well, most of us study hard for the SATS, work to keep our grades up, get involved with community service and extracurricular activities, and pour our hearts and free time into college applications but, there is another way.

Bribery.

It’s long been said that money opens doors, and apparently $500,000 paid to the athletic officials at the University of Southern California will kick down the door to higher education. At least that’s how it worked for Isabella and Olivia Giannulli, daughters of actress Lori Loughlin and clothing designer Mossimo Giannulli.

Loughlin, perhaps better known as Aunt Becky from the hit 80’s sitcom Full House, and its 2016 reboot, Fuller House, was among the wealthy parents accused. On April 3, 2019 Loughlin and Giannulli were brought before a federal court in Boston to face charges of paying $500,000 “in exchange for having their daughters designated as recruits to the University of Southern California crew team” according to a criminal complaint released on March 12, despite the girls having never competed in crew.

Thirty-three wealthy parents have been charged with bribing their children’s way into prestigious colleges after a 10-month investigation code named “Varsity Blues.” 13 parents and one coach have already pled guilty, including actress Felicity Huffman, best known for her role in Desperate Housewives. Huffman paid an SAT proctor $15,000 to help her daughter cheat by correcting her answers after the test had been submitted. There is some debate as to whether or not Huffman’s daughter knew about the correction; she claims she was ignorant as to her parents actions. Huffman received four months in prison. 

At the center of the scandal is college consultant William Singer. Singer arranged for students to take their ACTs and SATs at sites in Houston where he had bribed proctors to correct their tests. Additionally he bribed coaches to “falsely certify that students had been recruited for the school’s sports teams. Prosecutors said he also falsified ethnicities and other biographical details in some cases, to take advantage of affirmative action,” according to the New York Times. 

 So, all you need to succeed in life  is hard work, a good heart, and rich parents. But soon that might change. What effects will this have on the admissions process for those of us without $500,000 and photoshopped pictures of us on rowboats? Here at Albuquerque Academy, higher education is a goal of most of the student body. What does a major pebble in the pond of the college application process mean for us? 

“I don’t think there will be much impact [on Academy students’ college applications]. I hope that parents who are wondering what else they might be able to do will see this really extreme example and say ‘that’s not the path we want to go down, even if we were just going to go down it in milder ways’. Throwing money at a problem like college admissions doesn’t necessarily yield the results you think it will,” said college guidance counselor Mr. Ralph Figueroa.

No matter the changes that are made, however, the college application process is grueling. What lengths would we go to get into that dream school? Are there students at Academy whose families would do something similar?

 “I wouldn’t” said senior Leedy Corbin. “I’d constantly be feeling like I wouldn’t belong there… it’s tough. I personally don’t have the moral ambiguity to sneak someone else’s spot.”

The path to Ivy Leagues and other prestigious colleges is an incredibly difficult one. It is impossible not to see the unfairness present in the college application process.

“Fairness has never been the purpose, and that’s what students and parents have a hard time dealing with,” said Figueroa.

Time will tell if this scandal will even the playing field or just continue to complicate the process of seeking higher education. However, it is important to remember these words from Mr. Figueroa, “You have to be admitted for who you are… you have to be true to yourself… [and] you have to realize… you will thrive no matter where you go.”