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    varsity blues hits houston

    2 Houstonians indicted in nationwide college admissions scandal

    ABC13 Staff
    Mar 12, 2019 | 12:58 pm
    Lori Loughlin felicity huffman college admission scandal
    Actresses Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman join two Houstonians named in the scandal.
    Photo via ABC13.com

    A nationwide college admissions cheating scandal appears to have implications in Houston.

     

    Coaches, CEOs, and celebrities are caught up in allegations that bribes were paid to get their children into top schools, including Yale, Stanford, the University of Southern California, the University of Texas, and Georgetown.

     

    On Tuesday, March 12, federal prosecutors in Boston released nearly 300 pages of allegations in the operation dubbed "Varsity Blues."

     

    At least two Houstonians were indicted in the scheme: Martin Fox, who is the president of a private tennis academy in Houston, and Niki Williams, an assistant teacher at a Houston high school and test administrator for the College Board and ACT.

     

    Two of the biggest celebrity names on the list are actresses Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman. Prosecutors alleged Huffman, Loughlin, and 31 other parents from "wealth and privilege" paid a collective $25 million to get their children into colleges.

     

    Prosecutors say this is the largest college admissions cheating scam ever prosecuted in the U.S. Those indicted allegedly paid bribes from $200,000 to up to $6 million each to get their children into the elite schools.

     

    Prosecutors say the alleged scam was run by a college admissions counselor in California named William Singer who used testing centers in Houston and California.

     

    "To facilitate the scam, Singer counseled parents to take their children to a therapist and get a letter saying that because of purported learning disabilities or other issues, the child needed additional time to complete the ACT or the SAT. Once the companies that administered those exams had agreed to the extra time, Singer arranged for the child to take the exam individually with one of the proctors he had bribed either at a location in Houston or at a location in California," said Andrew Lelling, U.S. attorney in Massachusetts.

     

    The federal court documents are 269 pages in all. No students were charged. In many cases, the students were not aware of the fraud, authorities said.

     

    Head here to read more about the charges against the defendants.

     

     The Associated Press contributed to this report.

     

     ---

     

     For more on this story, including video, visit our content partner ABC13.

     
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    This Week's Hot Headlines

    Houston restaurant serves Beyoncé a Southern feast and more top stories

    CultureMap Staff
    Jul 5, 2025 | 10:32 am
    Taste Bar Kitchen Jay Z Don Bowie
    Courtesy of Taste Kitchen + Bar
    Legendary rapper Jay-Z with Taste Kitchen + Bar chef-owner Don Bowie.

    Editor's note: t's time to look back at the hottest Houston news of the week, starting with a Southern feast fit for Queen Bey. Plus, new bar openings from some big names. Get the details on our most popular stories below, then head to this guide for 4th of July weekend fun.

    1. Houston restaurant served Beyoncé a Southern feast for her first meal in H-Town. One of Houston’s most prominent Black-owned restaurants gave Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and her family their first taste of the Bayou City. On June 27, the party ordered an extensive spread from Taste Kitchen + Bar, the restaurant in downtown known for its chicken and waffles and other Southern-inspired fare.

    2. Exclusive: New cocktail bar from Houston hospitality stars coming to the Heights. The Heights’ growing bar scene will soon welcome a new addition with serious cocktail cred. Anvil owner Bobby Heugel has partnered with bartender Jacki Schromm to open a new cocktail bar in the former Ready Room space.

    3. Country star Koe Wetzel opens new location of his lively bar in Houston. One of Texas country’s rising stars has brought his lively bar to Houston. Koe Wetzel's Riot Room opened in Midtown in June.

     Koe Wetzel Riot Room Houston The pickup truck on the front of the building makes it easy to spot.  Photo by Motion Theory Media  

    4. Houston will have vivid sunsets and air quality issues from Saharan dust. An annual meteorological phenomenon has blown in to make Houston's sunsets a little more spectacular. A huge Sahara Desert dust cloud made its way to the Houston area on June 29, bringing hazy skies. The bad news is that air quality might worsen; the good news is that locals can expect a week of Technicolor twilights.

    5. Houston CEO's art-filled River Oaks mansion listed at $6.2 million. Art lovers seeking a home that’s a perfect showcase for their collection will be very interested in 1069 Kirby Drive, currently on the market for $6.2 million. The home is owned by Pete Bell, the CEO of Cotton Holdings.

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