Yale has joined the list of universities to revoke the admissions of students linked to the latest nationwide scandal, that of wealthy and connected families bribing their way into elite schools.
Without identifying the student in this instance, Yale University spokesman Thomas Conroy told the media that the school’s women’s soccer coach, Rudy Meredith, had resigned. She is expected to plead guilty to criminal fraud. Allegedly, she took a $400,000 bribe to accept an applicant who didn’t even play soccer.
In the last two weeks, similar college admissions scandal stories have arisen at Georgetown, UCLA, the University of Texas, the University of San Diego, Wake Forest, and the University of Southern California, which blocked several students from registering for classes and six more still in the application process. Two of these have been the highest-profile students embroiled in all of this so far; the daughters of Full House star Lori Loughlin. Loughlin currently faces federal fraud charges over the half-million dollars in bribes she paid to ensure her daughters’ place in the school.
It’s always been an open secret that the wealthy are ensured their places in prestigious schools. Legacy admissions, sports scholarships, and family endowments are all legitimate paths to which they have access. For those to not be enough, for these people to have to commit crimes to make sure they take opportunities away from the less fortunate makes one hope that the law throws the book at them.
A class-action lawsuit from students of eight of the involved universities is clear evidence that the student bodies feel harmed by these abuses of the admissions processes. The lawsuit claims more than $5 million in damages and accuses the schools of being “negligent in failing to maintain adequate protocols and security measures in place to guarantee the sanctity of the college admissions process.”
Federal prosecutors are saying that the schools are perhaps the most injured victims, and perhaps that has merit: it will take time, effort, and a great deal of goodwill to build public faith in a system long suspected and now proven to be ultimately corrupt.
Photo: A Yale University building on which can be seen the university’s seal. Perhaps ironically given the college admissions scandal, the Latin motto translates to “light and truth.” Credit: Spiroview Inc / Shutterstock.com
