Picture a world in which a college degree could be bought with cold, hard cash. Now, in order to earn that degree one must attend a four-year college or educational institution of some kind that will award the degree to them. So, effectively, this cold, hard cash will be used to have the student enter the institution to earn their bought degree. Not only has that student already bought their degree, but they have taken the place of a well-deserving student who was denied. Even if that denied student was more qualified.

This is not a fictitious world that has been described. This is the education world as we know it. The buying of admission to the country’s best schools by the ultra-rich must stop, but it probably won’t.

In what the Justice Department described as its most massive case over college admissions prosecution, 50 people have been charged with taking part in a nationwide scheme to gain admission to some of the country’s most competitive universities, including Yale and the University of Southern California.

Among those indicted are wealthy parents and celebrities, such as “Full House” actress Lori Loughlin and “Real Housewives” star Felicity Huffman, all of whom paid millions of dollars in bribes to have their children gain admission at elite schools. Also included are exam administrators and athletic coaches, accused of manufacturing the students’ “achievements” and private admissions counselors for orchestrating it all.

The scheme involved allowing students to gain access to the school through a spot on a sports team. These sports ranged from the now infamous position “Youtuber” and influencer Olivia Jade was said to have on her application, coxswain of the USC crew team, to intensely popular sports such as a “defender” for the Yale soccer team.

Those indicted and tried by federal authorities have been found to go as far as faking photographs and falsifying documents that verified their “sport.” This is a gross misuse of power by those with the massive affluence who were involved in the scheme.

This shows, since the whole scheme was only uncovered a under a year ago (arrests made about two weeks ago), that this specific impersonation and bribery will not be the first elite universities see. This also proves just how easy this was for the right parents with the right socioeconomic background and connections to get their unqualified children into college.

Not only is this unjust, but it is entirely unfair and must stop.

These “student-athletes” are taking away admission from qualified students who deserve to attend school where they were denied.

If you agree that something must be done to stop and prevent the super-rich from continuing to take advantage of weak college associates, support small liberal arts schools and community colleges who help deserving students, such as Washington College and Harrisburg Area Community College (HACC).