University slighted in Dr. Phil's comments on college admissions scandal responds

SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. — A Pennsylvania university is responding to comments Dr. Phil made to a magazine this week in relation to the college admissions scandal.

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Slippery Rock University's president posted a letter on the university's Facebook page after the talk show host said in an interview Thursday:

"They're not buying their kids an education. That's not what it's about, it has nothing to do with the education. I think this is jewelry for a lot of people. The kids are leaving high school. They don't want to say, 'My kid's going to the junior college.' They want to say, 'My kid's going to Harvard, my kid's going to USC or Yale.' I think it's bragging rights for them, and they don't want to be the one parent that says, 'Well, yeah, my kid's going to, like, Slippery Rock.'"

"You mentioned Slippery Rock University by name as the antithesis of a trophy school. We suspect that you didn't mean it as a compliment, but we take it as one anyway," part of the president's post said.

Authorities charged 50 people last month as part of a large-scale college admissions scheme, in which authorities say coaches were bribed to admit students as athletes regardless of their ability. At least nine college athletic coaches have been charged as part of the investigation, dubbed Operation Varsity Blues.

Cox Media Group