If you read the news then you’re no stranger to the lengths parents will go to, to ensure that their kids get into the “right” college. There’s the Varsity Blues scandal from earlier this year, where wealthy folks ran scams on the admissions system at Ivy-league colleges to get their kids in. And then there was the gossip scandal at elite Sidwell Friends School in DC, where parents were discovered spreading rumors about other kids, and even school counselors, to make their own children look better on their college applications. 

Will it ever end? Apparently not… The newest scandal rocking the college admissions world comes from the suburbs of Chicago, and involves, well, you guessed it – money. (Don’t they all?) But in this case, the fall-out from these scams could have a direct impact on foster kids in the future, robbing them of a chance to achieve their higher education goals.

If you want help with the cost of college, but earn too much money, what then?

College is expensive. Insanely expensive! Hundreds of thousands of dollars spent educating each generation. And the unfortunate reality is that many of those kids won’t use those degrees in any meaningful way. Which means countless dollars spent one something that’s ultimately wasted. For the very wealthy that cost doesn’t mean much, and doesn’t impact their bank accounts. 

For the poor, the dollar amount is so astronomical as to make the entire process utterly unreachable. They’re disqualified before they even begin. But for the middle class, it’s a quandary. Many parents in America’s midline economic status are still paying off their own college loans. They know the value of a college degree, but they’re also intimately acquainted with the incredible financial cost. On paper, they earn too much to be eligible for financial aid, but in real life, they barely make enough to sustain their lifestyles. So how do you get around it? Scams, obviously. Right?

You work the system in ways that aren’t illegal but are certainly questionable.

According to ProPublica and The Wall Street Journal, parents in the Chicago suburbs have been turning over their teenage children into the legal care of less wealthy families so that their kids will qualify for need-based financial aid when the time comes for college. Can you imagine that? Giving up your rights to your child simply so that someone else will pay for their college? It’s inconceivable, and yet it’s happening. But so what? Why would that matter? Who could it possibly hurt?

Join us next time for a look at how this college financial aid scam does impact kids in foster care. But until then, remember that if the kids in foster care are YOUR kids, and you’d like them back (as any reasonable parent would!) you need to call 866 766 5245. At The Kronzek Firm, our experienced and aggressive CPS defense attorneys can help you fight for your parental rights and protect your children from a broken system.