via Public Domain
In 2011, Kelley Williams-Bolar used her father’s address to qualify her two daughters for enrollment in the better-performing Copley-Fairlawn School District.
Once the district found out, they kicked her daughters out and demanded that she pay $30,000. When she refused, they unleashed their wrath.
Williams-Bolar was convicted of two FELONY charges, spent nine days in jail, served 80 hours of community service, and had to spend three years on probation - we wait to witness whether wealthy white families in the recent college scamming scandal are punished the same.
Williams-Bolar’s case highlights another demoralizing reality.
School districts rely heavily on property taxes collected from residents for funding. The higher a district’s average income, the larger their tax base, and thus the more resources available.
Williams-Bolar was facing down a system built to shut her daughters out of opportunities. And being Black with a felony record and five-figure fines to pay, her well-being was jeopardized for challenging the fairness of an unfair system.
Ohio Governor John Kasich recently downgraded her conviction from felony to first-degree misdemeanor.
“No one should interpret this as a pass. It’s a second chance,” he stated, acknowledging the excessiveness of the punishment. He never acknowledged, however, the unfair circumstances that led to her lie.
Today, Williams-Bolar is a teacher’s aide with one college graduate daughter and another on her way. Despite all the system did to keep her children from excelling, her family still found a way to rise above.