The University of Southern California has taken another step in disciplining students who may be associated withthe headline-making college admissions scandal.
USC was one of the schools named in the nationwide bribery scheme, which made headlines on March 12 when a 204-page affidavit in support of a criminal complaint was unsealed in federal court in Boston.
Though the university as a whole has not been accused of any wrongdoing, among the50 people who were indictedwere actressLori Loughlinand her fashion designer husbandJ. Mossimo Giannulli— who allegedly paid $500,000 to make it appear that their two daughters (Olivia Jade, 19, and Isabella Rose, 20) had been designated as recruits to the USC crew team, despite the fact that they did not participate in the sport.
Both Loughlin and Giannulli were arrested on a felony charge of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud. They were each freed on $1 million bonds. Neither have yet entered a plea.
From left: Olivia Jade Giannulli, Lori Loughlin and Isabella Rose Giannulli.Gabriel Olsen/Getty
It is not clear whether Olivia Jade and Isabella Rose were aware of their parents’ involvement in the scandal. Both women were not charged in the indictments.
It is also not clear whether Isabella Rose will remain at the school. A source previously told PEOPLE that Olivia Jade had “no plans to return to USC” when classes resumed on Monday. “She can’t handle anything right now,” the source said. “She seems more and more upset every day. She just wants to stay home.”
“She thought she knew what the future had in store for her, and it all just crumbled,” the source continued. “It’s a never-ending nightmare for her. She understands the serious consequences her parents are facing and she is very scared.”
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Meanwhile, USC has already terminated two employees associated with the allegations, they said on their website. They also placed a faculty member who was named as a parent in the alleged scheme on leave, a “required procedural step in the process for evaluating the termination of tenured faculty.”
Donations that may have been received in connection with the alleged scheme are being determined as well, according to USC. They will be redirected to a non-USC organization that benefits underserved students.
The university said they are continuing to work with the U.S. Justice Department’s investigation. Mostly, they are reexamining their admissions processes as a whole.
“We will take all necessary steps to safeguard the integrity of our admissions process and to ensure we conduct ourselves in a manner consistent with our values,” USC said.
Jane Buckingham and Felicity Huffman.Evans Ward/Bei/REX/Shutterstock
Other notable names among the alleged in the scheme includeDesperate Housewivesstar Felicity Huffman and authorJane Buckingham.
Some named in the court documents allegedly paid bribes of up to $6 million to get their children into elite schools, including Yale, Stanford, Georgetown, UCLA, University of San Diego, University of Texas and Wake Forest University, according to federal prosecutors.
In addition to parents, athletic coaches and exam administrators are also implicated in the scheme.
Admission to the schools mentioned in the complaint is extremely competitive: For first-time, full-time undergraduates, only 5 percent of applicants get into Stanford, 7 percent into Yale, 17 percent into Georgetown, 18 percent into the University of Southern California and 29 percent into Wake Forest, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
source: people.com
