Sam Eshaghoff | |
---|---|
![]() Eshaghoff in October 2023 | |
Born | Samuel Ezra Eshaghoff July 30, 1992
Great Neck, New York, U.S. |
Education |
New York University Stern School of Business (
MBA) Zicklin School of Business ( BBA) |
Occupation | Real estate developer |
Sam Eshaghoff (/ 'eʃæɡɑf/; born July 30, 1992) is an American real estate developer and former professional test-taker. He is the Managing Principal of West Egg Development, a New York-based real estate development and investment company. [1] In 2011, he was charged with impersonation and related crimes in connection with charging students to take standardized tests on their behalf. [2] [3] His operations caused the College Board and the Educational Testing Service to reform the way that standardized tests are secured and administered. [4] [5]
Eshaghoff was born in Great Neck, New York to an Iranian Jewish family. [6] [7] His father Roland Eshaghoff is a home renovator and his mother Janet Esagoff is a real estate attorney. [8] He was raised in Great Neck and attended John L. Miller Great Neck North High School. [9] He attended the University of Michigan, [10] later transferring to Emory University. [11] He ultimately earned his Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the Zicklin School of Business in New York, majoring in finance and real estate. He later attended the New York University Stern School of Business. [12]
Eshaghoff was discovered to have been operating a test-taking enterprise [13] while in high school whereby he charged students to take standardized tests, including the SAT and ACT, on their behalf. [14] Reports estimate that Eshaghoff had taken standardized tests for between 7 [15] and 20 [16] students, charging between $1,500 [17] and $3,600 [18] per exam. Eshaghoff consistently scored in the 97th percentile or better. [19]
Eshaghoff was arrested and charged by the district attorney of Nassau County for impersonation and falsification of business documents. [20] He was caught after prosecutors and ETS worked with school officials to compare students' SAT scores with their grade point averages, and conduct handwriting analyses. [21] Eshaghoff was represented by Long Island attorney Matin Emouna. [22]
Eshaghoff and the district attorney’s office agreed to conditionally discharge the case. Eshaghoff withdrew his attendance from Emory University.
As a condition of his discharge, Eshaghoff was required to perform substantial community service [23] in tutoring underprivileged students. [24] This tutoring included teaching SAT test-taking strategies to low-income students. [1] He tutored in an Educational Alliance program at the Manny Cantor Center, located in the Lower East Side of New York City. [25] He volunteers and educates underserved communities at The Brooklyn Bank, a nonprofit organization in Brooklyn. [26] He is the organization's Chairman and President of the Board. [27]
In response to Eshaghoff's operation, [28] [29] the College Board and ETS were forced to make radical changes to the administration and security of the SAT exam. [30] The College Board hired former FBI Director Louis Freeh [31] to oversee test security [32] and make substantial changes to test administration nationwide, [33] [34] including a requirement that students upload photos of themselves into a database [35] and regulations on the types of permitted identification. [36] The ACT exam, administered by ACT Education also underwent a major security reform. [37] The College Board also began providing law enforcement and government agencies the names of people believed to be engaged in cheating. [38] They have also considered alerting schools when test takers will be coming from other school districts [39] and reducing the number of times the test is administered overseas. [40] The announcement was made at a hearing of the New York State Senate's subcommittee on higher education, and Eshaghoff's methods specifically influenced the new legislation. [41] [42] The College Board has twice since made reforms [43] [44] to improve test integrity.
Eshaghoff was interviewed for CBS’s 60 Minutes [45] in an episode titled "The Perfect Score: Cheating on the SAT". [46] The segment featured Kurt Landgraf, who was the President of the Educational Testing Service at the time, [47] and Kathleen Rice, who was the District Attorney at the time. [48] The interview was conducted by Alison Stewart. [49]
In 2013, the Lifetime network aired The Cheating Pact, a television film based on Eshaghoff's story, [50] starring Daniela Bobadilla, Laura Ashley Samuels, Laura Slade Wiggins, Max Carver, and Cynthia Gibb. [51]
Eshaghoff is the founder and Managing Principal of West Egg Development, a New York-based real estate development and investment manager. His firm is involved in projects in the Greater New York City area. [52] His works include:
{{
cite web}}
: External link in |title=
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help)
Sam Eshaghoff | |
---|---|
![]() Eshaghoff in October 2023 | |
Born | Samuel Ezra Eshaghoff July 30, 1992
Great Neck, New York, U.S. |
Education |
New York University Stern School of Business (
MBA) Zicklin School of Business ( BBA) |
Occupation | Real estate developer |
Sam Eshaghoff (/ 'eʃæɡɑf/; born July 30, 1992) is an American real estate developer and former professional test-taker. He is the Managing Principal of West Egg Development, a New York-based real estate development and investment company. [1] In 2011, he was charged with impersonation and related crimes in connection with charging students to take standardized tests on their behalf. [2] [3] His operations caused the College Board and the Educational Testing Service to reform the way that standardized tests are secured and administered. [4] [5]
Eshaghoff was born in Great Neck, New York to an Iranian Jewish family. [6] [7] His father Roland Eshaghoff is a home renovator and his mother Janet Esagoff is a real estate attorney. [8] He was raised in Great Neck and attended John L. Miller Great Neck North High School. [9] He attended the University of Michigan, [10] later transferring to Emory University. [11] He ultimately earned his Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the Zicklin School of Business in New York, majoring in finance and real estate. He later attended the New York University Stern School of Business. [12]
Eshaghoff was discovered to have been operating a test-taking enterprise [13] while in high school whereby he charged students to take standardized tests, including the SAT and ACT, on their behalf. [14] Reports estimate that Eshaghoff had taken standardized tests for between 7 [15] and 20 [16] students, charging between $1,500 [17] and $3,600 [18] per exam. Eshaghoff consistently scored in the 97th percentile or better. [19]
Eshaghoff was arrested and charged by the district attorney of Nassau County for impersonation and falsification of business documents. [20] He was caught after prosecutors and ETS worked with school officials to compare students' SAT scores with their grade point averages, and conduct handwriting analyses. [21] Eshaghoff was represented by Long Island attorney Matin Emouna. [22]
Eshaghoff and the district attorney’s office agreed to conditionally discharge the case. Eshaghoff withdrew his attendance from Emory University.
As a condition of his discharge, Eshaghoff was required to perform substantial community service [23] in tutoring underprivileged students. [24] This tutoring included teaching SAT test-taking strategies to low-income students. [1] He tutored in an Educational Alliance program at the Manny Cantor Center, located in the Lower East Side of New York City. [25] He volunteers and educates underserved communities at The Brooklyn Bank, a nonprofit organization in Brooklyn. [26] He is the organization's Chairman and President of the Board. [27]
In response to Eshaghoff's operation, [28] [29] the College Board and ETS were forced to make radical changes to the administration and security of the SAT exam. [30] The College Board hired former FBI Director Louis Freeh [31] to oversee test security [32] and make substantial changes to test administration nationwide, [33] [34] including a requirement that students upload photos of themselves into a database [35] and regulations on the types of permitted identification. [36] The ACT exam, administered by ACT Education also underwent a major security reform. [37] The College Board also began providing law enforcement and government agencies the names of people believed to be engaged in cheating. [38] They have also considered alerting schools when test takers will be coming from other school districts [39] and reducing the number of times the test is administered overseas. [40] The announcement was made at a hearing of the New York State Senate's subcommittee on higher education, and Eshaghoff's methods specifically influenced the new legislation. [41] [42] The College Board has twice since made reforms [43] [44] to improve test integrity.
Eshaghoff was interviewed for CBS’s 60 Minutes [45] in an episode titled "The Perfect Score: Cheating on the SAT". [46] The segment featured Kurt Landgraf, who was the President of the Educational Testing Service at the time, [47] and Kathleen Rice, who was the District Attorney at the time. [48] The interview was conducted by Alison Stewart. [49]
In 2013, the Lifetime network aired The Cheating Pact, a television film based on Eshaghoff's story, [50] starring Daniela Bobadilla, Laura Ashley Samuels, Laura Slade Wiggins, Max Carver, and Cynthia Gibb. [51]
Eshaghoff is the founder and Managing Principal of West Egg Development, a New York-based real estate development and investment manager. His firm is involved in projects in the Greater New York City area. [52] His works include:
{{
cite web}}
: External link in |title=
(
help)