Why would an Ivy League college suspend a destitute Black boy for a year?

[Anonymous]

A young man I mentored years ago randomly reached out to me on facebook for advice because he is homeless after his college suspended him for cheating on an online assignment. He believes he was caught with some sort of tracking software, which he wasn't aware of. He said wealthier classmates cheat, but are savvier ex. know to do it with more than one computer. He fessed up when caught but was too embarrassed to go to a meeting they had about it. He was later notified he was kicked out for two semesters (sounds like a default judgment in court?). I'm not going to rationalize cheating but I believe there are varying degrees of it and don't get how or why a filthy rich college would throw a destitute Black teenager out on the street to punish him? A year out of college, locked out of campus recruiting, delaying his graduation and professional start a year, is more severe punishment than most campus rapists. And for what? Is he supposed to learn his lesson and come back reformed? Wouldn't this young man be better served if he was given resources and mentors, instead of being sent kicked to the curb with zero resources? Or is this a roundabout way of expelling him, as in they hope he doesn't come back?

[Anonymous]

Or they hope he transfers out to a non Ivy and doesn't cost them anymore financial aid?

[Anonymous]

All cheating is bad regardless and if you take a chance cheating, you take a chance of getting caught. No sympathy, whether it's him or my wealthy white/South Asian daughter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:All cheating is bad regardless and if you take a chance cheating, you take a chance of getting caught. No sympathy, whether it's him or my wealthy white/South Asian daughter.

+1

[Anonymous]

When I was teaching as a TA my university bent over backward not to punish students for plagiarism, etc. I'd wonder if this has been a pattern with him.

[Anonymous]

Maybe it was an automatic punishment for not attending that meeting.

[Anonymous]

You got only his side of the story. It sounds like there were remedy options that he didn't pursue.
It's still not too late. Help him write a letter of apology and set up a meeting with you and him and their student services/admission/whoever and petition hard for him. He needs to show them in person how much this means to him and he'll never do it again.

I have a couple friends who got kicked out on academic probation after freshman year, who petitioned, showed remorse and got readmitted.

[Anonymous]

This is tough. Covid remote work made everything worse; and the less resources kids start with, the worse it was for them. My kid at a non-ivy was so worried about breaking the honor code, they were afraid to be in study groups, in case someone revealed something ( test content) in a group chat and they would be guilty by virtue of being in the chat. It sounds paranoid, but it’s happened. It is a $hitty way to get an education; collaborating openly and study groups are so much better. Not much sympathy for cheating, but I do think the cards are stacked against kids with fewer resources. Hope you can offer guidance. Too bad the school didnt offer more support. His education isn’t over just bc he’s not at an Ivy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:All cheating is bad regardless and if you take a chance cheating, you take a chance of getting caught. No sympathy, whether it's him or my wealthy white/South Asian daughter.

Thank you for dropping your mask and revealing your racism and classism. I feel sorry for you that you can't seeing the evil involved when Ivy League PhDs bait and entrap low-income unsophisticated students with online assignments loaded with tracking software, railroad them with Ivy bureaucracy when they know they have zero resources, and quite literally make them homeless for a year. A college with tens of billions of dollars in an endowment. Literally putting this teen boy in jail for a year would be safer. At least he would have shelter and food.

[Anonymous]

He cheated and then skipped the meeting to discuss it? How is the college supposed to know that he's so economically precarious that he will be homeless (if he can't what, live in the dorms?) if he doesn't go to the meetings? Presumably, they figured he would go live at home or wherever he lived last year. But yes, he is supposed to learn his lesson and not cheat anymore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You got only his side of the story. It sounds like there were remedy options that he didn't pursue.
It's still not too late. Help him write a letter of apology and set up a meeting with you and him and their student services/admission/whoever and petition hard for him. He needs to show them in person how much this means to him and he'll never do it again.

I have a couple friends who got kicked out on academic probation after freshman year, who petitioned, showed remorse and got readmitted.

This. Skipping the meetings was a big mistake. It probably looked like he wasn't taking it seriously. He needs to demonstrate that he is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe it was an automatic punishment for not attending that meeting.

That's what I figured, like a default judgment if you don't show up for court? But still. It's evil and way too harsh, especially with the context of him being destitute with zero family. I haven't talked to him in years, I don't even work in his state anymore. It makes me so sad for him.

[Anonymous]

I'm saddened to hear about this situation. While everyone will agree cheating is wrong, I generally think elite schools take a harder line on academic dishonesty than they should (comparatively). The punishment often doesn't fit the infraction.The student should look into appealing the suspension. You can often get a reduced "sentence" on review by acknowledging and taking ownership of the shortcoming, especially since it doesn't sound like the student gave any explanation at all. Elite schools have had some suicide and self harm incidents regarding student punishment processes (Stanford had the headlines this year), so they also might be especially receptive to contrition and the overall set of student circumstances here.

If they were treated unfairly or if the punishment is harsher than what they know others have received, it might be worth having them speak with an attorney who doesn't charge for an initial consultation too (that is what many wealthy parents would likely do while also expressing disappointment in their cheating student).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:He cheated and then skipped the meeting to discuss it? How is the college supposed to know that he's so economically precarious that he will be homeless (if he can't what, live in the dorms?) if he doesn't go to the meetings? Presumably, they figured he would go live at home or wherever he lived last year. But yes, he is supposed to learn his lesson and not cheat anymore.

He was not a remote student, he was living in the dorm as required. It was not a remote course, it was an online assignment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All cheating is bad regardless and if you take a chance cheating, you take a chance of getting caught. No sympathy, whether it's him or my wealthy white/South Asian daughter.

Thank you for dropping your mask and revealing your racism and classism. I feel sorry for you that you can't seeing the evil involved when Ivy League PhDs bait and entrap low-income unsophisticated students with online assignments loaded with tracking software, railroad them with Ivy bureaucracy when they know they have zero resources, and quite literally make them homeless for a year. A college with tens of billions of dollars in an endowment. Literally putting this teen boy in jail for a year would be safer. At least he would have shelter and food.

The conspiracy theory doesn't fly here. They weren't out to get him or trying to make him homeless. They didn't "railroad" him; he didn't show up for the meeting. I hate all that tracking software stuff, but he cheated. He got caught. He blew off the meeting. They suspended him. None of this is "evil" or "baiting and entrapping" anyone.