I have told many stories about loose and wild things that have happened in life. The following story, so far as I know has never been publicly spoken about...... The Scandal - College Courses and Grades.
For most folks college is a time of being poor..... I was broke as a joke most of the college years, I did what I had to do to survive. I worked for Democrats during much of 1992....and I was on the wrong side of many divorce cases protecting complete jerks. I was an expert preparing rednecks for court, I guess because they were my people and I spoke the language. The truth is, they trusted me and told me the stuff they would never tell their attorney, and then we would work together to insure no one else would ever learn their darkest secrets.
A friend of mine found himself a TA (Teaching Assistant) which gave him (whoops did I just say he was a man..... hmm, or was I trying to mislead you - guess we'll never know) incredible computer access. My "friend" had access as a TA to add Grades and Courses to a students transcript.
Some classes are hard, we called them GATE KEEPERS back in college. I swear, the school would make you take certain classes that you would never need or ever use.....just to thin the herd. Many many many people never graduated from college because of 1 or 2 classes they ran into as a freshman the school did not make easy for the reason to scare you off or flunk you out.
My friend realized he could not only enter GRADES, but he could go into the system and CHANGE grades..... then as he got braver he would actually add courses for students......
My friend wasn't just a nice guy - he was doing this for money. I promise you there are people in the world today with degrees they did not fully earn.
He eventually added a pay scale, B changed to an A - $50. C or lower to an A, $100. Cost to add the entire class and grade.....depended on what he could negotiate. Forty years ago $100 wasn't a small cost.....
For the most part, people didn't talk..... Coaches might take an interest in athletes GPA's and know the ins and outs...... but for the most part it was just a deep secret that took place for several years....... Until -
The grades were all changed in the middle of the night, and one night a PhD was up late finishing his grades, and watched as a student's grade changed before his eyes......and all hell broke loose, AT FIRST---
Funny things about bad things,......sometimes people don't talk because they don't want the secret to get out. Did some people get credit for classes they did not pass - Oh, hell yes.... would that then cause the world to question every degree from the school.... Also yes!
......and thus, the scandal became a thing you don't talk about. My friend did find another college and as far as I know..... Not a single person has talked about it publicly in all these decades.
As much as I would like the world to be easy, Good guys wearing White hats and the Bad guys in black.....it just isn't that way. Bad things happen, cheating happens...... If you paid $100 to get an A in Dorthy Lell's People and Places of the World did it really impact the world...... hmm, maybe. God, I hated her.....
What Scandal do you know about.......
