Woman goes to jail for lying about her residency to send kids to better school

[Anonymous]

http://www.aolnews.com/2011/01/26/ohio-mom-kelley-williams-bolar-jailed-for-lying-about-kids-scho/?icid=maing%7Cmain5%7Cdl1%7Csec1_lnk1%7C39432


I know it's Ohio, but what is your take on this? In particular, the jail sentence.

[Anonymous]

Sad on many levels. But jail? Seriously? Yes, absolutely there should be some type of reprisal. But can't help thinking there is more to this story. Like why did it take 4 years? Is she the only parent or was there some kind of sweep of cheaters? Who ratted her out? Was she doing other crazy stuff? What does the Waiting for Superman team think of this?

Maybe she should sue the Akron district for crap schools.

[Anonymous]

to quote the article "... Copley-Fairlawn Superintendent Brian Poe said the district has lost hundreds of thousands of dollars because of children illegally enrolled in its schools. The cases are usually resolved by parents proving they live in the district, taking their kids out of the schools or paying tuition of about $800 a month, the station reported.

Williams-Bolar's case was the first residency challenge to reach a criminal courtroom, but Poe said it was to send a message. "If you're paying taxes on a home here ... those dollars need to stay home with our students," Poe said, according to the station..."

So it seems that she was given an opportunity to:
1. Prove that she actually lived in the district - which she couldn't
2. Taking her kids out of the school - which it appears she chose not to do
3. Or paying tuition - and given she was living in project housing I assume she did not have the means to do this


She was commiting fraud in falsifying the residency of her children and these are the consequences. I wish DC would be more viligent with the same. There are always rumors of the numbers of children who come into some of the magnet schools from Maryland using the address of an Aunt, Uncle, Friend, Grandparent etc. Everyone (teachers included) know that the child is not a DC resident but everyone looks the other way.

[Anonymous]

How does someone refuse to remove their child from a school. The parent is told that the child is not eligible, the teachers refuse to admit the child to his/her classes. How hard is this?

[Anonymous]

Hard to keep a kid out of class for the mistakes of their parent. I can see how teachers and school administrators did not "punish" the kid for the choice mom made.

[Anonymous]

so now the kids really ARE living with the grandfather....

[Anonymous]

I hope the judg gets cancer of the prick

[Anonymous]

judge

[Anonymous]

brian poe should get cancer of the prick

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She was commiting fraud in falsifying the residency of her children and these are the consequences. I wish DC would be more viligent with the same. There are always rumors of the numbers of children who come into some of the magnet schools from Maryland using the address of an Aunt, Uncle, Friend, Grandparent etc. Everyone (teachers included) know that the child is not a DC resident but everyone looks the other way.

So if you put all those people in jail, how much would that cost the city? Honestly, this is an overblown issue in DCPS. Even the good schools here aren't that great. Selective high schools included. There is more address flexibility/fraud within the city to get in-boundary (once you're in, you're in) than from across the border. There's no incentive for principals to keep fraudulent families in a school once "everyone knows". There are more effective ways than jail to send a message. I highly doubt the hordes of frauds in DC will be pulling kids out en masse after this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She was commiting fraud in falsifying the residency of her children and these are the consequences. I wish DC would be more viligent with the same. There are always rumors of the numbers of children who come into some of the magnet schools from Maryland using the address of an Aunt, Uncle, Friend, Grandparent etc. Everyone (teachers included) know that the child is not a DC resident but everyone looks the other way.

So if you put all those people in jail, how much would that cost the city? Honestly, this is an overblown issue in DCPS. Even the good schools here aren't that great. Selective high schools included. There is more address flexibility/fraud within the city to get in-boundary (once you're in, you're in) than from across the border. There's no incentive for principals to keep fraudulent families in a school once "everyone knows". There are more effective ways than jail to send a message. I highly doubt the hordes of frauds in DC will be pulling kids out en masse after this.

True, but unlike the Ohio case, those people are actually paying DC taxes so they can make the case that they're entitled. It's not really different from OOBs. What was significant in the article was that the woman had multiple chances to pay her way and did not do so. DC OOB families - whether formal or informal - have already met that burden.

[Anonymous]

DCPS flat out told a (West) friend to use her mom's address to go to Janney.

[Anonymous]

I know someone who lives near a desirable school, & cars with MD plates drop kids off there every day. Out-of-state people should have to pay a hefty fine if they get caught & get kicked out. They are keeping our kids from having a chance at winning the lottery to one of the few good schools in DC. I care much less about people who actually live in DC cheating the system, especially if it's just because they moved, but it's still gross and I'm not doing it.

As regards this story, jail time is completely over-the-top ridiculous. I think I heard that decision to give jail time got reversed.

[Anonymous]

I hope that while the mom's in jail and kids are living with grandfather, he enrolls them back in the good school district. In effect, the jail time now legitimizes the kids' living in-bounds. karma

[Anonymous]

Our public school system, funded by local taxes, is separate and unequal. Unfair that she has no opportunity to send her kids to school where they might actually have the opportunity to pull themselves out of the projects and be successful young women. Instead, we'll just deride them and scorn them when they are grown up project moms themselves.