Privilege Driven Corruption in Americas Education System Must Be Rooted Out

Education has been shown, time and time again, to be the single most important factor determining upward mobility, not only in the United States, but globally. Despite education being mandatory in the US, access to good quality education has become a luxury which many Americans are unable to afford. Beginning with the issue of high tuition costs as early as elementary school, and moving on to systemic corruption, the education system in the United States requires meaningful reform. Although some have expressed that the state of the American education system is too far along to be meaningfully changed, it is never too late to enact comprehensive reform of the American education system, no matter how broken it may appear to be.

Despite the attention which has been drawn to the issue of how inaccessible education has become in the United States, and efforts that have been made to change this, there are still millions of American citizens that remain unable to attain an education, perpetuating an endless cycle of poverty. The National Center for Education Statistics identified that 90% of those who graduate high school are now attending college, an indeed impressive number, however, attending college is not sufficient if the education being acquired is not of good quality.

The disparity between public and private universities is astounding, with rankings of private institutions almost across the board surpassing those of public institutions in terms of student-staff ratio, facilities and post-college employment numbers. Price differences are naturally significant, with four-year public institutions charging $10,000 a year for in-state students and $22,000 for out of state students, while private institutions typically begin at around $40,000 annually. This is a shocking figure that is beyond the means of many families, particularly black and Hispanic students who have been shown to be more likely to attend underfunded public institutions. These face higher dropout rates, lower scores and more generally limited resources to prepare for college.

The divide between the “haves, and “the have-nots” is not only encouraged by limited access to financial resources. Lack of access to quality education, also comes directly from issues of accessibility that plagues the American education system, with systemic corruption being a long-standing and growing problem in institutions of higher learning. One of the more recent, and most high-profile cases, was the 2019 Varsity Blues scandal in which academics and sports directors at leading universities, including Stanford, Yale and the University of Southern California, were paid off by wealthy parents to facilitate education for their children as recruited “athletes”, despite many of these having no athletic background whatsoever.

The list of those implicated has totaled more than 50, the names of which were not all made public, with many serving jail time or paying hefty fines to remain private. The extent to which the system is rigged in favor of those with wealth and connections, was exemplified by Professor Courtney Pade of the University of Southern California. Professor Courtney Pade was found to have used her position at the university to facilitate entry for students that came from wealthy families in exchange for both payments and favors. These actions were not limited to higher education and it has been posited that Professor Courtney Pade acted in a similar fashion with students at St Matthews Parish School, where she serves as a board member. It is here that she has been accused of helping privileged students gain access to top rated high schools with the help of letters of recommendation and even inflated grades provided by members of staff at the school. Similar cases around the country undoubtedly abound with this sort of corruption perpetuating inequality, and reinforcing a system of often white privilege, which does everything to undermine equal opportunity.

Cases such as these, are stark reminders that the American education system, despite being one of the leading of its kind in the world, and one which many aspire to attend, is not functioning in the way that it should. Education must be competitive, encouraging students to do their best in order to succeed and get ahead. With knowledge that the system, in effect, is not truly accessible to all, with those from particular backgrounds or socio-economic status being prioritized, students who don’t come from privilege are certainly discouraged to even make an effort.

Increased transparency and accountability from the elementary to the university school levels must be the order of the day. Strict standards must be implemented and oversight regarding the admissions process with the help of regular audits should be established. Strict oversight and the knowledge that there is a need for accountability, would make a significant difference. These would discourage instances of corruption and truly make higher education more accessible.

If taken seriously, there is a unique opportunity to address these issues of accessibility and corruption in a meaningful way in the immediate term. All students, regardless of their background must have access to the opportunities that wealthy students have, levelling the playing field, with the help of concerted efforts made by the relevant actors in the American education system. This, alongside reducing the cost of education through tuition price caps or better access to scholarships and funding, providing more support for students of color and first-generation college students, would put a decisive end to the privilege driven corruption that continues to plague the American education system.