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Preview: The Perfect Score

December 29, 2011 3:01 PM

In his first interview about his criminal fraud, Sam Eshaghoff tells how he was able to take the SAT and ACT college admissions exams for others who paid him up to $2,500 per test. Alison Stewart reports on Sunday, Jan. 1 at 7 p.m. ET/PT.

College test scammer says he saved lives
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by Argonblu January 4, 2012 2:46 AM EST
This is one bright kid with a slightly askew moral compass. With the right mentorship he can turn his life around. Throwing the book at him is not the answer.
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by under40 January 2, 2012 8:33 PM EST
When I watched this episode, my otherwise gentle blood began to boil. This kid has no morals and any punishment he received isn't enough--it's just too bad that his "clients" won't be punished as well. Nobody is hurt? I don't think so--how about everyone who follo3ws the rules, studies, and does his or her best on the SAT? What a PUNK!
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by smittyc January 2, 2012 1:18 AM EST
The SAT test do work in the big picture. The kids he took the test for will fail in the college environment, the building blocks that were taught but were not learned before college assures a high failure rate for his friends. What will happen to this kid, hard to say, hopefully he will wake up to the fact in the long run, you can't beat being honest.
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by venusvegasvada January 1, 2012 10:30 PM EST
The plummeting moral fiber of our youth is not just constrained to College students. The US military discovered that the latest generation of young men and women joining the services couldn't simply swear their oath to defend the Constitution and be done with it. So many lacked basic, common sense moral values that now the military has to TEACH them right from wrong by making them swear to live by written, basic values! Pretty shocking when you have to teach young adults what they should have already known by the 3rd grade. Here's the list of Army Core Values:

Loyalty
Duty
Respect
Selfless Service
Honor
Integrity
Personal Courage

Loyalty
Bear true faith and allegiance to the U.S. Constitution, the Army, your unit and other Soldiers. Bearing true faith and allegiance is a matter of believing in and devoting yourself to something or someone. A loyal Soldier is one who supports the leadership and stands up for fellow Soldiers. By wearing the uniform of the U.S. Army you are expressing your loyalty. And by doing your share, you show your loyalty to your unit.

Duty
Fulfill your obligations. Doing your duty means more than carrying out your assigned tasks. Duty means being able to accomplish tasks as part of a team. The work of the U.S. Army is a complex combination of missions, tasks and responsibilities — all in constant motion. Our work entails building one assignment onto another. You fulfill your obligations as a part of your unit every time you resist the temptation to take "shortcuts" that might undermine the integrity of the final product.

Respect
Treat people as they should be treated. In the Soldier's Code, we pledge to "treat others with dignity and respect while expecting others to do the same." Respect is what allows us to appreciate the best in other people. Respect is trusting that all people have done their jobs and fulfilled their duty. And self-respect is a vital ingredient with the Army value of respect, which results from knowing you have put forth your best effort. The Army is one team and each of us has something to contribute.

Selfless Service
Put the welfare of the nation, the Army and your subordinates before your own. Selfless service is larger than just one person. In serving your country, you are doing your duty loyally without thought of recognition or gain. The basic building block of selfless service is the commitment of each team member to go a little further, endure a little longer, and look a little closer to see how he or she can add to the effort.

Honor
Live up to Army values. The nation's highest military award is The Medal of Honor. This award goes to Soldiers who make honor a matter of daily living — Soldiers who develop the habit of being honorable, and solidify that habit with every value choice they make. Honor is a matter of carrying out, acting, and living the values of respect, duty, loyalty, selfless service, integrity and personal courage in everything you do.

Integrity
Do what's right, legally and morally. Integrity is a quality you develop by adhering to moral principles. It requires that you do and say nothing that deceives others. As your integrity grows, so does the trust others place in you. The more choices you make based on integrity, the more this highly prized value will affect your relationships with family and friends, and, finally, the fundamental acceptance of yourself.

Personal Courage
Face fear, danger or adversity (physical or moral). Personal courage has long been associated with our Army. With physical courage, it is a matter of enduring physical duress and at times risking personal safety. Facing moral fear or adversity may be a long, slow process of continuing forward on the right path, especially if taking those actions is not popular with others. You can build your personal courage by daily standing up for and acting upon the things that you know are honorable.
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by venusvegasvada January 1, 2012 10:12 PM EST
Too bad your SAT and ACT scores don't show the hollow crater you call your conscious. It's that giant void in your life that is supposed to hold your moral values and the fiber of who you are.

Perhaps your parents were Wall Street finance types or politicians? It's hard for me to visualize how someone grows up not only without any kind of morals, but without the ability of taking any kind of responsibility for their actions AND to so effortlessly claim they are perfectly correct in what they are doing.

I'm sure you'll make a fine lawyer, CEO or politician someday. In America today, none of those positions require any semblance of morality either. Just a thick coat of BS and the ability to make a buck without caring how many people get thrown under the bus.

Take a good look at this kid America. Congratulations at the quality of our next generation.
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by jgramsey January 1, 2012 8:53 PM EST
What I don't understand is why this cheating smart person is allowed to remain in his college. He should be expelled, as should the others who used him to cheat for them; and this should be a permanent blight on their records. Starting over somewhere else after a period of community service would be more severe. In my mind he was treated as a "darling" by your interviewer and has no real remorse. A little actual emotional pain might make a lasting change in this person, but not the treatment he actually received: a slap on the wrist and the chance to extoll his test taking ability to the American pubic. I am appalled that CBS seemingly treats this subject in such a cavalier manner.
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by sellamae January 1, 2012 8:26 PM EST
While I don't agree with the cheating process, I do agree that all kids learn differently. I would be curious to know if the students this kid helped get in made it through the first semester. Who got robbed? The school got the money and if the student didn't make it, oh well. At least they got a chance.
Theft only occorrs if a service isn't paid for.
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by hende14 January 1, 2012 8:25 PM EST
All I could think of during this story is how the CBS news organization will not cover the even more rampant practice of people voting fraudulently using other people's identification. The comment made by reporter Alison Stewart concerning taking away the right of students, "playing by the rules," having their place in college taken away is exactly how I feel when someone votes fraudulently and my representation is taken away. Security procedures for SAT tests are not even close to as important as security procedures that should be in place to prevent fraudulent voting.
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by lijesse January 1, 2012 11:13 AM EST
The real story here isn't that Sam Eshaghoff and his student clients cheated on scholastic tests, but rather why we accept rampant dishonesty in our politicians, our law enforcement agencies, and our businesses, and then show such outrage when our youth follow suit. It seems to me all those who cheated have the perfect accomplishment to add to their resumes if they want to run for office or apply for a CEO's position in our financial sector. Perhaps bank CEO's should be working Sam Eshaghoff into their succession plans just in case our corrupt regulators are forced to prosecute the crooks who destroyed our economy. Sam has demonstrated, at a young age, the initiative and dishonesty to move on to bigger and better frauds! Good job Sam!
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by davidc_z December 30, 2011 11:02 PM EST
The death of ethics in this country scares me. From politicians to students, there is no moral compass anymore.
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