Just because it happens doesn’t make it right
- Posted by admin
- On March 22, 2019
- 0 Comments
I started to write this month’s blog on letting our kids fail. Then the big admissions scandal hit, and I decided to write my take on that instead. Tune in next month if you want to hear about letting your kids fail – it’s actually somewhat related if you think about it. These parents were so desperately afraid of their children “failing” to get into the college they wanted for them on their own merit that they literally cheated their way in. They were not only unethical and unfair, but they broke the law.
I can’t tell you how many conversations I have had about this since the news “broke.” One person on my Facebook feed commented “how naïve are you? This has been going on for decades.” Another one said, “are you really surprised it happens? I didn’t know it was a secret.” I responded to both that no, I was not surprised, but that did not mean I thought it was right, or OK, or that we shouldn’t address it. I also noted that I think it’s one thing to make a donation to a school out in the public eye, and perhaps boost your child’s chance at admission (still unfair, admittedly) and another thing entirely to outright cheat on the ACT/SAT and make up false athletic credentials. This entered a different level, in my opinion. Has it happened for years? Probably. Does it make it right? Absolutely not. As a die hard higher education professional who still believes in the value of a college education, I am glad it is coming out into the public arena, hopefully forcing institutions to take a closer look at their policies. Many institutions already have policies in place where admissions decisions are made solely in admissions – advancement and athletics have no say. I am sure College Board and the ACT will be looking much more closely at their organizations and administrations of their exams. Other schools have started to consider not using SAT/ACT as a factor in admissions at all, knowing the challenges with these tests that already existed before this new issue even arose. I would not be surprised if more schools go this route.
What I find even more interesting, however, was the need for these parents to go this route. These students already had every advantage. They were going to do just fine no matter where they ended up. They have the financial stability and social, cultural, and economic capital needed to succeed – no matter where they went to college. For many students, college is a chance for a better future; the opportunity to improve their economic and social standing. I was recently on a career panel at my daughter’s middle school and another panelist advised them “go to the best college you can, because you will be surrounded by good, smart people who will challenge you to be your best self.” Now, I knew what she meant. But there are many factors that will allow students to be able to do that –cultural and financial are the top two that come to mind. But what I took from that was that students who want to better their situations should go to top schools – and I see some value there. Where you go to college does matter, in many cases, and can often open many doors. Which is why I just don’t understand the lengths these folks these went to to lie and cheat their kids way into college. Their kids didn’t need to “better” their social or economic standing. So, why do it? I am not sure I will understand that. No matter where those kids went, they were going to be just fine, given their parents’ wealth and connections.
So what was it? Social pressure? Lawnmower/helicopter parenting to an extreme? Something else? I don’t know. But I will end with this. What those parents did was wrong. Bottom line. Whether or not their children will ever feel it, who knows. They are at a level of privilege I cannot touch. But I can say they did those kids no favors. Their understanding of self-efficacy and merit will be forever changed. They need to succeed and fail on their own merits. And that, my friends, will be topic of next month’s blog.
0 Comments