I was a student of color at an elite school. The cheating scandal doesn’t surprise me.
The following essay was written by Bianca Sierra Wolff, a lawyer, Stanford Law grad, and Deputy Director at California ChangeLawyers.
Federal prosecutors just indicted over 30 wealthy parents in the largest higher education scam in history. Wealthy parents scammed, faked, colluded, and cheated their way into elite schools.
And yet none of this surprises me. Instead, this scandal is a reminder that higher education, like so many of our American institutions, has always favored the wealthy and privileged.
Too many kids of color don’t even get the chance to attend schools like Harvard and Stanford. And for those who do, the burden of having fought your way into these schools stays with you. You never fully celebrate your successes because self-doubt, insecurities, and anxiety take over.
I should know. I was one of those kids.
While I was shocked and happy to get my Stanford college acceptance letter, I immediately felt the weight of the world on my shoulders. My parents were immigrants. My dad had become disabled and could no longer work. I held a part-time job to help make ends meet. I saw my acceptance into Stanford as my one shot at a future for myself and my family; as proof to all those who had told us to go back to Mexico or made fun of our accents, that we actually did belong.
And then I stepped foot on campus and my jaw dropped. All my classmates who drove the latest model Mercedes Benz or bragged about their movie star family friends — they all had one thing in common: they were so sure they belonged at a place like Stanford. I never did. Instead of celebrating my successes, I simply felt like I wasn’t good enough. And if I’m honest with myself, the stress of always having to prove myself has never really gone away.
This is why the cheating scandal hits such a nerve.
Poor students of color are told to keep their heads down and work hard and success will be yours. This is an outright lie. There are two sets of rules — the rules for poor kids of color like me and then the rules for rich kids like the ones embroiled in this scandal.
The cheating scandal forces us to ask: what is the difference between a kid whose parents paid to lie about being an athletic recruit or whose parents donated millions of dollars to a school to ensure their kids get in. I honestly don’t see much of a difference.
It’s time for a reckoning. It’s time to speak the truth: the story of higher education in America is the story of racism and economic inequity. Until we have an honest conversation- until we admit that the playing field is not level — exceptional students who overcame incredible odds will continue to feel the stigma of not being good enough while privileged kids will continue to think that their spot at Stanford is owed to them.
