Desperate Housewives Go From Full House to Big House

(source)

My friend Susan came up with that headline and it's a beaut, isn't it?

It's kind of delicious isn't it, hearing about the famous actresses and wealthy families that paid bribes to get their kids into the best schools. But as a parent I can totally understand how easy it would be to fall down that rabbit hole. What parent doesn't want the best for their kids?  I am not making excuses, a crime is a crime. And I know that hiring tutors and coaches for my kids are a far cry from bribing college coaches and test center proctors, but still...

I've been thinking about the entire apply-for-college ordeal quite a bit (after writing the first draft of this post last night) and am coming around to the idea that the entire process is fraught - from applications, to finding an edge to get in (like sports) to the outlandish price of a degree from one of the "top" schools. Good gracious, how did we get here? 

Here are some (more) thoughtful takes on it:

From Washington Post's On Parenting: "My dilemma as a college essay coach: How to walk the fine line between helping and cheating"

Pantsuit Politics Show (podcast): Beto, Manafort, the College Admissions Scandal and Understanding Antisemitism. The College Admissions portion starts at 14:50.

And on the downside of student loans and a parents role to guide kids towards sensible financial decisions, some tough love from Dave Ramsey, DAVE RANT: We're Making Stupid Education Decisions. Emmit's story starts at 4:30, the actual rant starts at 10:25.

Here's to the kids and parents that got through the process with morals and bank accounts intact :-)