Students Were Told to Claim to Be Minorities in College Admissions Scandal

William “Rick” Singer, the man at the center of the college admissions scandal designed to help rich kids get ahead by cheating and faking athletic credentials, also advised some applicants to falsely claim they were racial minorities, according to The Wall Street Journal. One parent who will be pleading guilty for her role in the scam said her son is incorrectly listed as being black and Hispanic. The same parent also paid Singer to arrange for someone to take her son’s ACT admissions test. “Singer frequently gave families the option of misrepresenting race and would say that not doing so could put their child at a competitive disadvantage,” the Journal reports. Singer has agreed to plead guilty to four federal charges brought against him in the scandal.