Two students at a Great Neck yeshiva are suspected of paying someone smarter to take their SAT tests, according to a ballooning probe that has ensnared 35 kids at five Long Island high schools, sources told The Post.
North Shore Hebrew Academy HS Principal Dr. Daniel Vitow said officials have subpoenaed the SAT records of two former students, one of whom ended up enrolling at NYU.
He said that because of the small school’s familiarity with its students, he’s certain the surrogates took the exam at another high school — an option he believes makes it easier to pull off impersonations.
“The problem is, the kids can go to any test center,” he told The Post. “The solution is simple — take the SAT in your own school.”
Vitow said a 2010 graduate had recorded a 270-point boost on two sections combined — out of 1600 points possible — in his second crack at the high-stakes exam.
A 2009 graduate who took the exam four times saw his scores rollercoaster from one sitting to the next — and ultimately netted just 90 additional points for his efforts.
“This kid didn’t get his money’s worth,” Vitow quipped. “He deserves a refund.”
He added that he was “clearly disappointed” with the graduates.
“Why did they do it? They could have gotten in without cheating,” he said. “They were regular kids — they never gave us an ounce of trouble.”
The growing probe is targeting students at two other private schools and two public schools, and includes kids suspected of hiring surrogate test-takers for the ACT exam, according to Nassau DA Kathleen Rice’s office.
Students who paid others to take the exams, who took the tests for others, or who furnished the false identification are all expected to be arrested, although officials couldn’t say when.
Rice spokesman John Byrne said some cheaters would go unpunished because of a two-year statute of limitation on misdemeanor charges of hiring a stand-in.
The limit on felony scheme to defraud — which could apply to the test-takers — is five years.
Six students at Great Neck North HS were already charged in September for allegedly paying a 19-year-old college kid thousands of dollars to take their SATs.
The college student, Sam Eshaghoff, of Great Neck, was also charged.
The busts led to a state Senate hearing on testing security and procedures on Long Island last month.
A spokesman for the Educational Testing Service, which administers the SAT exam, applauded the investigation.
“The serious consequences that the DA’s Office is visiting upon the offenders . . . will serve as a wakeup call to any students, not only on Long Island or in New York, but across the country, who are thinking of risking their futures with such an unethical and foolish act,” he said.
An ACT spokesman said the company was “deeply concerned about test security and takes the matter very seriously.”