WOW..this takes the cake!

April - posted on 01/30/2011

One has to ask, why are they going out after this moom when we have sooo many illegals in the country basically doing the same thing and getting away with soo much more money than that. She was in the wrong by doing it the way she did, but to have to be jailed over this? The absolute most she should have to endure is that her children be sent back to the other school, and maybe maybe put on probation or a fine be levied against her. And make the fine payable by having her do more volunteer work, that would be my solution, the school district should have used the money spent on this hiring a private investigator into hiring better teachers and maybe hiring some security guards for the school to make it safer so the students can feel and actually be safe and maybe then the school standards would be raised up a bit. Looks like someone got angry because they could not do the same and took off on a rampage to get her for it.

~Jennifer - posted on 01/29/2011

I was also offered the option of binging a utility bill as proof of address, but opted for the notarized letter as utility bills or a ' fake lease' could pose 'rental income' issues for my father on his taxes.....we don't rent...we share the property and we are responsible for the yearly taxes; my father pays for all structural repairs and homeowner's insurance. We split utilities.

....but if I get followed home by a PI, as the woman in the OP was...at least I'm parked in the correct driveway every night.

Like I said - it's up to you what you decide, but I personally would never ask someone I considered a friend to do something illegal for my own benefit.

Isobel - posted on 01/29/2011

Here, when you register you just have to bring official mail (like a bill or a bank statement) to prove where you live...before I lived with Rupe and I wanted the kids to go to the school they are at now, I used his address...I just had my bank send my mail to his place and used that for proof of address.

Again, I find it a little different here cause the schools are all equal or at least similar, it's just that the zoning lines are so bizarre, in order to be able to walk to school you need to lie about your address.

~Jennifer - posted on 01/29/2011

If you pay rent to a landlord it's assumed that part of your rent is to cover their property taxes, isn't it?

(at least - that's what i would think)



As for 'lending your address'? Well, if it's illegal to do so where you are, I'm sure you'd be aware that there could be consequences for doing so, and have decided that the pros outweigh the cons. If you have to sign a legal document stating that the person lives at your address, (my father had to have a document notarized to state that I lived at his / our property when we moved into the guest house 2 weeks ago so that my son could start school in the district) or they sign one stating that they live @ your address and it's found to be untrue, you'll both have to deal with that when and if it comes up. It's your decision.

I, personally, would not do it, nor would I ask anyone else to do it for me.

Isobel - posted on 01/29/2011

so...if you don't own a home and don't pay ANY property taxes...where should your children have the "right" to go to school?

Do people have an objection with the fact that I am lending my address to somebody who lives down the street from me? Or is it a different offense because the family down the street makes the same money and pays the same taxes?

Kelly - posted on 01/29/2011

I disagree with the idea that underachieving schools have less parental involvement because the parents are working multiple jobs. One of the schools in our district has this problem and actually had to send out volunteer requests to other schools because they did not have enough parents willing to come work in the tutoring program which their school really needed. In a school of 700+ kids, they had 12 parent volunteers, yet nearly half of the students had one or more parents listed as "unemployed" or "homemaker" on their tax registrations. They had time, they are just uninterested. Or, they are working 2 jobs and lying on the tax forms which is no good either...

She had the option to pay the fine or remove her kids, just like the other parents caught lying. She chose her punishment, so she should not be complaining about it. Out of district tuition is pretty consistent across the board, it is around $7k a year here too, she cannot deny she didn't know how much it was or that she had to pay it. Besides the fact that the info is easy to obtain, ignorance is no excuse for breaking the law--that would be like saying it's okay to rob a bank if you don't know it's illegal.

She should have legally gone about having the law changed if she felt it was an unjust law, or legally gone about getting her kids into the school she wanted them in. Sorry, but it's a crime.

And last, if she is allowed to send her kids to the other school, then all of the students should have the same option, then that would lead the "good" schools to be over crowded and under financed, while the other schools sat nearly empty. It wouldn't work, you have to look at the big picture and future effects of these actions, not only at the single incident. I find very many of these posts rather short sighted and naive.

Jenn - posted on 01/29/2011

But she made that choice to continue with the lie, unlike the others who admitted their wrong-doing. So who's going to drive my getaway car? I'm going to rob the bank today. It's OK though right? I just want what's best for my kids, and we don't have much money, so I'm justified, right?

Barb - posted on 01/29/2011

I absolutely believe this had to do with race and the social stigma we have on people who are accepting assistance and equating them with criminals, which makes it easier to prosecute and treat them as such.

How sad is it that this lady is working as a school teacher's assistant and isn't paid enough to live on her own to need housing assistance?

Ohio/Akron/Copley/Fairlawn is cutting off their nose to spite their face here, and so are we as a nation if we find this acceptable.

They had a woman here who was an asset to society, no criminal record, giving to the community with her teaching skills, raising her daughters, teaching them to care for family by caring for her father who had a stroke, instead of just tossing him into the system as well. Trying to give them an education in a place where they can be safe because she knows it's hard to learn in a place where you don't feel safe, where people are getting hurt every day and they could be next. So they too can grow up to benefit society and not have to live in the cycle of poverty that she is trying to break.

So what have they done now? They have slapped a felony on her. She probably won't be allowed to teach with felony on her record. What kind of job is she going to
get with a felony on her record? She is just going to
need more assistance now, thus perpetuating the poverty cycle.

This is taken from this news link: http://www.ohio.com/news/112920979.html

However, court records show that Williams-Bolar and her father believed they had permission to keep the children in the Copley-Fairlawn schools, through June 2008, while a ''residency dispute'' issue was being investigated by the Ohio Department of Education.

In a letter from the education department, dated Jan. 17, 2008, the Copley-Fairlawn school district superintendent and an attorney for Williams-Bolar were informed that, after receiving input on the issue from only one side, ''the department is considering the matter closed at this time.''

Both sides were given two weeks to explain their positions to the state education department's assistant legal counsel, but only the attorney for Williams-Bolar did, the letter stated.

Fifteen months after the children were enrolled in another school district in the fall of 2008, Williams-Bolar and her father were indicted on the tampering and theft charges — without receiving any other communications from Copley-Fairlawn school officials, court records show.

The Copley-Fairlawn school system contends, O'Brien wrote in court briefs, ''that since the children were actually living outside their school district boundaries, then each child should have paid approximately $7,000 per year for two years, for a total of approximately $30,000 owed to the school system.''

Tell me this isn't about money. They did this to her because they could. Because she is poor. They chose to hire investigators instead of educators.

Isobel - posted on 01/28/2011

The more money a community has, the more time they have for volunteering. I don't think it's fair to punish a child for the fact that their mother needs to work to pay the bills.

Jackie - posted on 01/28/2011

Usually when a school is considered "better" it is because the parents put in the time with their children and encourage education as a goal. This woman did not want to make the effort or follow the path to legally get her children enrolled so IMO she prolly isn't an ideal parent, she just got lucky and maybe her kids were born with a higher IQ than normal in the family. For anyone to claim this is a race thing is just supporting frivolous lawsuits.



Before we moved into our home, we looked into school districts first and then looked at the home choices. Choices are made based on what is more important... obviously her children weren't the most important option when choosing a place to live.



Her punishment is okay in my eyes.

Becky - posted on 01/28/2011

http://www.circleofmoms.com/debating-mum...

Chatty - posted on 01/28/2011

Earlobes are not useless! ;)

Desiree - posted on 01/28/2011

Living in Johannesburg we see this quite a bit but you are allowed to send your child to a school in the area you work. The schooling system here is a joke so what happening is that parents are starting up their own schools in order to make sure their children get an education. and in some places we barely have school and the children are taught under the tree's. I personally have my children in private schools after starting them off in the Government school. If it weren't for my father paying half heaven know where I would be. It costs me R 95 000.00 or $14 000.00 to put my children through 1 year of school and that doesn't include all the extra like school uniform, stationary and levies for track and field or computers. It also does not include any field trips that may happen through the year. Year the government school is cheaper, but then my kids can't do music (no facilities) or most of the sports (unsafe).
I feel she should and anyone should be allowed to send their children to a school that is best suited to their children. And I admire her for at least wanting more for her kids who doesn't. But then again you need to be prepared to pay for it. I do, because I want to and my kids have a right to the best possible education I can possible give them. and it doesn't matter whether you black or white, pink or orange. Here in South Africa there are a number of African children going to private schools because their parents bosses are paying for it. At the end of the day it doesn't matter those kids at least have a good foundation.

Rosie - posted on 01/28/2011

oh and i totally think this has everything to do with race. probably can't prove it, but i'd bet my left earlobe (since they're useless and all, lol) that most of the people investigated were black. kindof sets off alarms to the rich folk when the poor black kids come strolling in....

~Jennifer - posted on 01/28/2011

Dianna,

Throwing around words like 'stuck up' and 'selfish' to someone who is simply providing information is foolish and misguided.

Please wait until you've posted a bit more than 15 times on a forum to make misinformed assumptions about the other members.

Thanks.

Rosie - posted on 01/28/2011

i don't understand why people are upset about someone wanting to further her childrens education. i could care less if someone wants to send their child to our school district and don't pay the taxes to do so. much better to have them educated than be out on the street poppping out more babies for welfare, eh? aahhh, but i digress...

Chatty - posted on 01/28/2011

She could have agreed to pay the back tuition....ok, I just said that to get in on this debate. I'm late and I'll be back...

Isobel - posted on 01/28/2011

Being poor and having to work two jobs will seriously cut down on your ability or willingness to volunteer at the school. Volunteering levels almost always coincide with salary levels. If your neighbourhood has lots of families that can afford a sahm, you're gonna have a lot more volunteers and vice versa.

The districts where I live are a little more subjective. I remember when I lived on the corner of Yonge and Davisville, there was a school right across from my apartment building BUT because I was on the other side of Yonge street, I had to drag my kids on a subway and a streetcar to get them to a school that was ridiculously far away.

I also have a friend who lives down the street from me whose son wants to go the high school that is located half way between our two houses but can't because he's on the wrong side of the street.

I have offered her my address so that her son can go to whichever school he wants to.

I was talking to her about this subject today and she makes a good point. If the grandparents lived in district for the school...they are paying property taxes towards the school system and not sending children. How can there be a shortfall in taxes if SOMEBODY in the family is paying taxes and not sending children?

Kelly - posted on 01/28/2011

Laci, she is in jail because she refused to pay the back tuition--they gave her the opportunity to do so, but SHE chose to go to jail instead.

I have several points and I'm not exactly sure where to start, but here goes.
In my district, there are good schools and bad schools. They all get the same amount of tax funding, but some excel and some flounder behind. Why? Parent involvement.
The good schools have parents who volunteer at school, tutoring, fundraising, doing medial tasks so the teacher have time for important things, etc. The bad schools have parents that would not set foot on school grounds unless you forced or paid them to.

Second, there have to be laws in place like this or everyone would send their kids to the better schools and there would not be enough money in the school to provide a good education. If we let her lie, then where do we draw the line? We cannot allow some to lie, and persecute others for lying.

LaCi - posted on 01/28/2011

This is not jail worthy.

She should pay the back tuition. She should now have to pay tuition for her kids to stay there. That's fine. Jailtime is just ridiculous though, in my opinion. They're trying to make an example of her.

Tracey - posted on 01/28/2011

I can't access the link so I'm making assumptions regarding this story based on other posts. Lady lies about where she lives to get kids into better school, got caught, couldn't / wouldn't pay fine so went to prison.
I bought my house in a good school catchment area 13 years ago when my oldest child was 18 months old. It was 25% more than houses outside the catchment area but we felt it was a price worth paying to get our children a good education. There is also social housing in the area for those who can't afford to buy. Why should someone be able to lie and cheat the system, thereby denying other children whose families have acted properly a place at a school.
I'm not arguing about rich / poor, you have children, you know they are going to school when old enough so look ahead and find a legal way to get there.

Dianna - posted on 01/27/2011

Really, that's interesting to hear you say that... My daughter goes to school with kids who live in $500,000.00 & up, guess what? My house isn't worth near that... Just yesterday several of those parents and I were waiting in the cold for our kids to get out of school, those really rich parents found that, this woman was being treated unfairly on level your very stuck up self would never imagine. They even wondered if her kids were picked out due to race. We all agreed it was a grave miscarriage of justice just because she wanted a better education for her children especially since her father lived there. We have different laws and rules for each state about school districts, but our state has never done that to someone... To punish someone for taking excellent care of there children is hypocracy, and ruining her chances of getting her degree is even worse. I'm sorry your so selfish, that you feel a couple extra kids is a strain, while here in our district w/ 2 green schools (eco friendly/LEED schools) we would welcome them with open arms and we need to build another middle school in the next couple of years. Oh and our property taxes are far from cheap.

Dianna - posted on 01/27/2011

I find it an abserd that she is being treated like a common criminal, instead of a loving and caring mother who wants the best for her children. In the state I live in, if your child doesn't live in that school didtrict you can pay fees for them to attend other districts, or even earn grants to attend other districts. As far as I am aware, no one has ever been arrested in our state. They may have been charged a fine, and had to register there kids back in the proper school district, but no one has ever been so mistreated for wanting to give there children a better education or life. I feel that there state & law enforcement has gone way to far, atleast someone in her family actually lives in that school district. People shouldn't be asking why she did it, we know why, she was trying to better her childrens lives. Who cares why she couldn't move in with her father right away, she had her childrens best interests at heart. Isn't that why we joined this sight mothers, because we all want whats best for children? We should be supporting this woman and hoping this miscarriage of justice gets overturned and they move on to real criminals...

Jane - posted on 01/27/2011

Yeah, when I heard this on the news I was appauled by the whole thing. Sure, she could have done things differently but JAIL TIME and a felony which means now she can't become a teacher which she was so close to completing her degree.

My husband and I were just talking about this. I'd almost guarantee that the ACLU will be doing some investigating the school to see how many non-white kids have been investigated, etc. I hope she wins on appeal. What the hell ever happened to compassion for someone trying to do the right thing.

~Jennifer - posted on 01/27/2011

You have to understand though....the people that live in the towns with the 'better' school systems PAY to live there.

Christ.....we have LESS than a 1/4 of an acre and our property taxes are just over (USD)$8,000 a year.

We PAY OUT THE ASS for our kids to have this school system.



Base salary for teachers here is around $78,500 a year...

we have some of the best teachers money can buy.....lol!

Bridget - posted on 01/27/2011

i actually agree with them not letting her kids got to the school thats she wanted them in. she had options she could have moved in with her father to make it legal plus she wasn't put in jail for trying to put her kids in a better school it was because she didn't pay taxes. i don't mean to sound harsh but she did break the law and there is consequences

Natasha - posted on 01/27/2011

This is why I am so glad that I live where I do. There are about 5 different schools that I can choose from for my children to go to, and that includes a Catholic school and 2 French Immersion schools. It does not matter where I live, merely where I choose to send my children.

It seems to me, an outsider, that the districts are set up in a way that promotes segregation. If you can only go to school with people who are in the same financial base as you, how do you learn about other groups of people? I hate to put it this way, but it feels like the new way of having white and black schools, only now they are rich and poor schools. A $30,000.00 fine is CRAZY!!! Why should giving a child (or 2 children) bankrupt a woman? As for the prospect of losing her job and the career she has been working for, I feel so bad for her.

Linea - posted on 01/27/2011

This is absolutely pathetic! She should not have broken the law, but I understand why she did it. They need to work on the school district she is in because if it is bad enough to cause her to go to this extreme for her children's education. It is sad that we pay so much in state and federal taxes, but we still see this situation time and time again. This seems like mismanagement of funds to me. Hopefully they will stop worrying about people who are breaking the rules to send their kids to better schools and start investigating why they don't want their children going to the schools in their district. I know the year that I started middle school we had to move because of the school that I would have went to was bad

Pansy - posted on 01/27/2011

Oh, my! Oh, my! It is absolutely disturbing that over half the posts on this particular topic are people who use such terrible English and most do not even know how to use punctuation. That is so sad. How can these children learn anything?

~Jennifer - posted on 01/27/2011

Our public school district's 'per student' yearly expenditures total (USD) $15,299 per year, per student.....or 598 dollars more than this school district is requesting in enrollment fees and back tuition fees for these 2 girls. The 30,000 in back tuition is for 2 years worth of schooling they had already received illegally. Our school district spends roughly that much on 2 kids for just ONE year.



It's MORE than possible that the 'out of town' tuition could be that high.

http://www.neighborhoodscout.com/nj/fair...

Laura - posted on 01/27/2011

It wasn't a fine it was an enrollment fee. We also don't know the situation her dad was in so can't say why didn't she just move in with him. One thing is for sure she had a goal. With as much attention this story is getting something good will come from it. I'm sure Oprah or Dr. Phil will get wind of this and do something, lol. But joking aside, there is no way that tuition for both those girls was $30,000 a year. In a public school none the less.

Amy - posted on 01/27/2011

Cyndel,
In a perfect world, I agree with you; we should have EVERYONE go to a better school district. But that would never work because then nobody would bust their butt to be able to live and pay taxes in the more expensive areas because the government would just take care of us. That's called socialism and it doesn't work. If the people who are working very hard to have what they want are being forced to take care of those who don't, the hard working people will stop working hard. I agree, she should have moved in with her father until her 12.5 credits were completed and she could get a better job. Even if she had to keep her house for a while and then sell it when the market picks back up. We all have to make sacrifices to give our children the best.

Sheryl - posted on 01/27/2011

this is a case of making her. 30,000 dollers give me a break. i would never ever pay something like that. i understand wanting a better ed. for you kids. but what they wanted her to pay. that just wrong. yes it may be wrong and against. the law but with the ecom. and where she said they lived is just wrong. i just thing the school stsyem when to far with this. so i guess it a crime to want are kids to go to good schools. yes i understand paying different taxes but 30,000. there not way. she should have just moved in with her dad. shot i going to have to pay 300 for a year for my child to go to a better school. then that if they have room has they say. all kids should have the right to a good ed.! to many school that just don't care and bad teachers out there and the good ones getting layed off. that what i think.

Amy - posted on 01/27/2011

Mandie - I completely agree with you and think it's ridiculous that people are saying it's "the rich not wanting to mingle with the poor". How about it's the people who are paying their dues not wanting to foot the bill for someone who is cheating the system? Sounds more accurate. Tax evasion it is.

Amy - posted on 01/27/2011

I think the penalty is harsh, especially if she is the only one paying it. It's also totally understandable that someone could be willing to do something illegal to give their children the best. However, what she did WAS illegal. A lot of people struggle to be able to live in the school district where they want their kids. My family does. We spend a lot less money on other things because we want to be in the best district for our son. I would take issue if this was my school district and someone was cheating the system. If this woman was not paying into the system, she should not have been sending her kids to that school. I could even see moving IN WITH her father so that her kids could go to that school while she finished school and then moving them.
Having said all that, I don't think it should affect her ability to become a teacher. She obviously cares a great deal for kids and that's more than I can say for a lot of teachers you hear about these days.

Melody - posted on 01/27/2011

This is why Charter School are critical! No parent should go to jail for wanting a better education for their child. WE NEED OPTIONS IN EDUCATION!!!!

Krissy - posted on 01/27/2011

ithink that 30,00 dollars to dsend any kid to school and then the school to turn around a use that mone yto 'investigate' 100 familys is a croc. *shakes head* thye need a leason in learning that these kids need the best education you can get i thank god that i dont have to pay that much to our school that is just appalling i know for a fact that the American Gov have Public schools at the bottom of the money chain and at the top it is the army navy and air force. they should concentrate on teaching kids. not putting it all in the 'war' fund. buck uup american gov grow some balls and help the schools who need that help. these kids work hard to get to where they want ot with all the crime and others, the good parents try to teach ther kids all the wholesome things of the world and tell them to study hard to get out of the neighborhood, it's just pathetic.

Tiffany - posted on 01/27/2011

This is just sad in many way. I feel many feeling as I am one who pays extremely high property taxes and my children have great schools because of it. Ok so as someone who does pay high taxes for great schools i do not feel it right for others who do not pay these taxes to come over for free education. In saying that if her father is paying those taxes then his grandchildren should be able to attend those schools. The question that should be asked is why is our government so messed up to where the education for ALL children in the united States isnt the same. Why dont we higher people like this lady, who truly care about her children and educating them to become educated people, to teach children how to work hard and teach them the importance of education. Should thee be consequences to her action... absolutely but this is just pride.

~♥Little Miss - posted on 01/27/2011

Just move in with dear old dad I suppose.

~♥Little Miss - posted on 01/27/2011

I would lie in a heartbeat! BREAKING THE LAW!!!!!...Yup this is one of those that would be jsutified. We live in a shit area, with a shit school system. I have my son in private pre-school right now, and mostlikely will have to send him there for kindergarted. We are planning on moving soon...but if we cannot before he goes to 1st grade???? I already have a place to call "home" in a far superior school district.

~♥Little Miss - posted on 01/27/2011

Ummmmm...HELLOOOOO!!!!!! Her dad pays taxes there, so if she is living part time there...why the hell not????

Good for her! More power to her, I hope she gets this rectified.....I think this is ridiculous...

JuLeah - posted on 01/27/2011

We do like to keep 'the poor' in their place

Ashley - posted on 01/27/2011

That's pretty sad that because she lives in an area with high crime, (probably because that's all she can afford like me), her children have to go to a lower grade school because she isn't paying the "appropriate taxes." They should be encouraging that she wants better for her kids, and that she wants them to have a great education. I went to a school outside my district when I was in middle school. If it wasn't for that I wouldn't have gotten a scholarship and got a good education. Just because a family has a low income, shouldn't mean they have to go to a lower grade school. Money is everything in this country. It's sad.

Helen - posted on 01/27/2011

I think that it is disgraceful that she was sent to prison. I would have thought that the judge would have exercised more compassion given the motivation for her actions. I am guessing that even had she wanted to pay the fine, coming from a poorer district that this may not have been possible.

Danielle - posted on 01/27/2011

I don't understand why she didn't move in with her father! That would have solved the problem. I understand wanting your children to be in the best school available, but you have to do it legally. At the same time, I'm appalled that the school district spent thousands of dollars investigating and prosecuting her! They should have just told to her either pay the out-of-district tuition or move into the correct area or else the children would be kicked out of the school.

Kammy - posted on 01/27/2011

Really they dont have anything better to do.. What is wrong with this picture.....

Debbie - posted on 01/27/2011

maybe if the government funded these schools the way they should we would not have to worry about our kids getting a better education, as it is schools are closing down and teachers are losing there jobs every day from all the government cutbacks, instead of spending so much money on retirement for government officials cut back there pay! pay for something that would help the next generation, and quit getting rid of quality schools and teachers, it makes me mad this woman had to go the route she did to get her children a good education, the government needs to fix what they messed up!

Robi - posted on 01/27/2011

What a waste of our judicial funds! Her father lives in the district and pays taxes right so why not allow her kids to go to school there? Or is the school district just out for money? I wonder how many people live in the district and pay taxes and don't have kids?

Nikkole - posted on 01/27/2011

Where i live we have a crappy school the school i want my kids to go to it in another district and you can not pay different tuition they wont let you my mom just recently tried to get my sister in there so some places are different!

Alex - posted on 01/27/2011

We have zoning here in NZ as well and though we have a thing were you can apply and an amount of out of zone people get in to the school. I have to agree that she should have paid the fines, not being able to afford well....they probably could have worked it so she was paying a certain amount of money, the problem is that often people pay different taxes is different places based on where they are, I know hard to believe but yes rich people actually often do pay more taxes then poor people (there are exceptions) for example over here because im closer to the city so its considered a better place to live then i pay more rent and more water and land rates and in return i can go to what is considered a "better" school. I guess in the end she probably shouldnt have gone to jail that was a bit silly but they should have made her pay the fines and though i understand she was trying to get her children a better life....there are thousands of people that work there butts off to get to a better life and follow the law....