NOTE: Some of the content of this review appeared in my review of Unacceptable by Melissa Korn and Jennifer Levitz, published and reviewed July 2020. Both books cover the “Varsity Blues” college admissions scandal. Prior to reading these books, my knowledge on the subject was pretty much limited to what I had seen in People magazine (Aunt Becky and one of the Desperate Housewives on the cover) and during late-night television (think SNL as well as monologues by various hosts). And as a former college instructor and a fan of various college sports, I had a superficial awareness of recruiting. Overall, if I had been asked whether some people got preferential admissions to colleges and universities based on income, celebrity, or athletic ability, my answer would probably have been “duh.” In recent years, I have seen friends and neighbors agonizing about their childrens’ efforts to get into a “good” school and hiring admissions counselors (which I had never heard of when I went to college), I admit I found the whole thing fascinating. I was surprised to learn the scandal that broke involving this subject was WAY bigger than the few famous names in the news.
In both Guilty Admissions and Unacceptable, Rick Singer is revealed as a sleazy guy who would do pretty much anything to get someone into their chosen college or university for the right price. And actress Lori Loughlin, her husband Mossimo Giannuli, and actress Felicity Huffman have been portrayed as parents who would pay whatever it took to get their kids into a chosen school. But there are so many more examples of the dozens of people caught up in the federal investigation into the criminal conspiracy designed to influence admissions officers at eleven schools.
Singer definitely is the central figure in the crimes, controlling two firms (Key Worldwide Foundation and The Edge College & Career Network) that were central to the fraud. The whole story started to come out when one of the (non-famous) parents, who happened to be under investigation for an unrelated securities crime, offered to give information about the admissions fraud that he had become aware of when the soccer coach at Yale asked him for $450,000 in exchange for helping get his daughter in to Yale. That coach pled guilty and led the Feds to Singer. As the scandal unfolded, many parents (including Felicity Huffman) pled guilty to mail fraud. Those who didn’t plead guilty (including Lori Laughlin) received additional federal charges of money laundering.
As it turned out, in addition to facilitating outright bribes such as those involving the Yale coach mentioned above, Singer frequently did the following: bribed exam administrators to facilitate cheating on SAT and ACT exams (including both hiring someone to take the exam in the applicants’ places and having someone change the applicants’ answers on the exams to improve scores); worked with coaches and administrators to nominate unqualified athletes as elite recruits for various sports; and used his charitable organization to launder payments. The whole thing was huge and complex, and he will serve decades in prison for his role.
What set this book apart was the focus on Southern California, and the exploration of the culture that leads parents (and students) to do anything to be in the “right” school…and that it starts in PRESCHOOL. LaPorte’s chapter “Toddler Admissions Mania” is stunning in its exposure of the “services” that are available for parents to prepare their little ones of the “kindergarten assessment test” they may need to take to ensure admission to their kindergarten of choice. One of the founders of a company that provides these services said “...she saw the need for a transitional program for preschoolers going into kinderga=rtenm so they may have the skills, confidence, and skill sets to thrive and build a strong foundation early on.” Frankly, I was equally fascinated by the way these parents want to push their kids toward fulfilling their own aspirations and saddened by the idea of what this must be doing to the children. I was glued to both these books for days, and in both cases I came away with a few strong reactions. First, I admit I went into reading these books agreeing to some extent with the defense attorneys that “Their clients were just doing what persons of prosperity have forever done to give their kids an edge.” Second, powerful people really do stick together in times of crisis: “One of the people who wrote the judge…was Jared Kushner.” And third, who knew that USC was so hard to get into? Long known by those of us from SoCal as the “University of Spoiled Children,” many of us thought that pretty much anyone could get in, if they had a famous name or a big enough wallet. But times have really changed. For example, “In 2015, the USC athletics department hit its $300 million fundraising target.” And that is just ONE year, one school.
Unacceptable is 40% footnotes/citations/documentation (including links to videos, documents, etc.). So anyone wondering how certain stories or events happened can definitely find the answer. It is very well done, and written so it reads like a novel. Guilty Admissions is an equally fascinating story, even more of a soap opera-ish look at the lack of ethical restraint that is becoming more and more the norm from the White House down. Five stars, and thanks to Twelve Books and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for this honest review.