Opinion

BECK: Scamming to get into college

Averi-Alexya Beck is a junior mass communication major from Shreveport, La.

The love a parent has for his or her child is unconditional and never-ending, but how far is too far when it comes to doing all you can to see your child succeed?
Though all parents should assist their sons or daughters to strive to reach his or her highest potential, moral boundaries should never be crossed.
In recent news, well-known celebrities, such as Lori Loughlin from “Full House” and Felicity Huffman from “Desperate Housewives”, have been charged with bribing faculty members to get their children accepted into elite universities. The parents allegedly paid thousands of dollars get test administrators to give their child a high score on entrance exams and/or make it seem as if their child is a star athlete that the school needs.
If you have never heard of something called “privilege” this is it. Aside from having gifts and services handed to them simply for being an actor or actress, these parents also have something that can get them and their descendants much farther: money.
The love of money has gotten many people in trouble since the beginning of time. Money often makes people forget their morals and standards, especially when they are in a hard spot in life.
I view situations like these as tests to see if we are willing to do some “down-low” things for temporary gain. Unfortunately, often times we fail these tests.
Because a group of people thought they could pull a couple of strings under the table to benefit their children, they now could possibly face jail time.
One thing neither the parents or accused administration probably did not think about now is, “What about the children?” Though all the parents technically wanted the best for their child, if they were not to get caught and the children attended the prestigious universities, would they actually survive academically?
Would the children pass the challenging classes or would the parents pay the student’s way through that, too?
These celebrity parents thought they were helping their child by putting a foot in the door for them, but really they were hindering them in life. You can’t rely on mommy’s money the rest of your life.
This is the difference between the average student in the South, such as myself, and a student who has an advantage of not only a wealthy parent, but a celebrity parent. My mom gifted me with what she could, but I have been raised to earn and work for everything that I desire. I have been blessed to have a village of people who support me emotionally and financially, but nothing was handed to me on a silver spoon. Everything I have achieved, I acquired through hard work.
Many say spoiled kids, like the children of the celebrity parents, have it easier in life because of the money and fame, but in all honesty, they will have it harder. They will face more challenges in life because of their reliance on what is handed to them. We can only wish the best for them. As far as the parents, everything that is done in the dark will come to the light and justice will prevail.