The Landry students referenced here -- "those who had spent more time in traditional schools" -- were not necessarily "completely average students". As the lege

The Landry students referenced here -- "those who had spent more time in traditional schools" -- were not necessarily "completely average students". As the legend of T.M. Landry grew, high-performing students and their parents lobbied to get in. Maybe being affiliated with T.M. Landry boosted their chances in a way unrelated to merit, but it's also very possible these students were capable of success no matter where they graduated from. The NYT story [0] says this: > The student in the most viral video, who spent only a short time at Landry, is in his first semester at Harvard. Other Landry students have been admitted to Harvard over the past three years, but the university declined to provide information on their status. > For yet other Landry students, particularly those who spent multiple years at the school, the results after graduation have been disappointing. Some have withdrawn from college, or transferred to less rigorous programs. In any case, we've long known before T.M. Landry that students who have below-par academic credentials on paper can succeed in the Ivies. Jared Kushner, one of the most powerful men in the country right now, was accepted into Harvard despite reportedly having a mediocre GPA and test scores: https://www.propublica.org/article/the-story-behind-jared-kushners-curious-acceptance-into-harvard https://www.propublica.org/article/the-story-behind-jared-ku... [0] https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/30/us/tm-landry-college-prep-black-students.html https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/30/us/tm-landry-college-prep...