Mother who put kids in wrong school released from jail early
Ohio mother Kelley Williams-Bolar is led off to jail after her conviction last week.
January 27th, 2011
11:06 AM ET

Mother who put kids in wrong school released from jail early

An Ohio woman who was jailed for tampering with records to get her children into a better school district has been released from jail a day early, according to a local newspaper.

Kelley Williams-Bolar left the Summit County Jail on Wednesday, having served nine days of her 10-day sentence, the Akron Beacon Journal reported.

Williams-Bolar, a single mother living in subsidized housing in Akron, used her father's address to register her two daughters in the high-achieving suburban Copley-Fairlawn school district.

Copley-Fairlawn said the improper registration cost it $30,000 in lost tuition and $6,000 in investigative costs.

The case has drawn national media attention and outrage, much of it due to its racial undertones: Williams-Bolar is black, while the Copley-Fairlawn schools are predominantly white.

A Google search for Williams-Bolar's name turns up 131,000 results.

Williams-Bolar told CNN affiliate WEWS-TV in Cleveland that she plans to appeal her conviction. The local chapter of the Rev. Al Sharpton's National Action Network is trying to raise money to fund the appeal, the Beacon Journal reported.

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Filed under: Crime • Education • Justice • Ohio • Race • U.S.
soundoff (855 Responses)
  1. Gina B

    For all the political corruption going on on Ohio, this is the biggest waste of time and money, spending it on a mom trying to give her kids the best education possible.
    I work in the school district in my area and this is quite common. I'd much prefer they allowed the child of a caring parent to remain enrolled and spent the time and money prosecuting parents who don't give a rip and send their kids to school dirty, hungry, late, and/or are too busy partying to bother helping with homework because teaching them anything "is the school's job."

    February 16, 2011 at 9:14 am | Report abuse |
  2. zann

    The grandfather pays property taxes. If the kids live with him (even if its just during the week, visiting their mom on weekends), I see no problem with them going to school in the town where he lives.

    February 16, 2011 at 10:09 am | Report abuse |
  3. Mathew

    WHAT A DISGUSTED APPALING LAW T O SEGREGATE LEGALLY AGAINST BLACK CHILDREN OF THIS COUNTRY. Law makers conveniently made a Law keep away the black children from Predominantly white .

    If all children are equally deserve the rights ........then why its a big issue that whether this women lied or not? If our own children in America can not have the equal privileges, then why do we preach the equality and justice to the world? if our black children canot have the equal privileges and rights with , then what is Pledge of allegiance means to us? why do we chant Pledge of allegiance??

    February 21, 2011 at 4:40 pm | Report abuse |
    • Anthony Peterson

      Remember Brown v Board of Education?

      March 26, 2011 at 4:27 am | Report abuse |
  4. Mike

    I'm glad she took up space in jail meant for the violent criminals that Ohio lets out of jail due to "over crowding".

    February 23, 2011 at 11:28 am | Report abuse |
    • Anthony Peterson

      You didnt kno that jails are meant for innocent people too?

      March 26, 2011 at 4:26 am | Report abuse |
  5. Nasha

    you buy what you can afford. Stealing is not the right way.

    February 25, 2011 at 4:01 pm | Report abuse |
    • Anthony Peterson

      Correct, except who is doing the stealing? The $31k per student district or the $10 per student district?

      March 26, 2011 at 4:24 am | Report abuse |
  6. Nasha

    why didn't she pretent renting her dad's home. Only one paper contract would legalize the who thing.

    February 25, 2011 at 4:25 pm | Report abuse |
  7. Anthony Peterson

    The OH prosecutors office might hav done better service to offer a reduced charge plea. In absence of one puts the OH education system on trial. $31k per child and substandard results doesnt compare well to the $10k per student at the affluent school district. Another less addressed issue is demographic of both school districts in terms of phyco-social hinderinces that may likely plague the Akon district. Two of my sons were (based on last yrs data) district plagued w/ low test scores, lower income, minority populations and an underacheiving Roanoke elementary school. This school year, the administration and staff listened to concerns of parents about elements of peer behavior that impeeded their childrens ability to function in schools. Conversely, parents listened to the expectations of the school system in facilitating our childrens acedemic acheivements. More time and resource were needed for after school programs, teaches communicated effectively to parents about short-commings hence a respectful, hands-on approach has been implement by a team of residents and educators. The Akron prosecution was just bad policy.

    March 26, 2011 at 4:13 am | Report abuse |
    • Anthony Peterson

      I forgot to add.....our school ranked up to 3rd in the SOL test scorces in the city.

      March 26, 2011 at 4:23 am | Report abuse |
  8. Anthony Peterson

    And your last name is?

    March 26, 2011 at 4:34 am | Report abuse |
  9. B

    I know someone who doesn't send her kids to school...nothing happens, even after several people notified child services and the DA's office...nothing! and she still gets welfare checks every month...sad

    October 23, 2011 at 9:12 am | Report abuse |
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