Page 6 THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRiDAy, MARCH 7, 2025 Local students named to Holy Cross’ fall 2024 Dean’s List M ore than 1,700 students were named to the College of the Holy Cross’ Dean’s List for outstanding academic achievement during the fall semester of the 2024-25 academic year. The following Everett students made the list: Gabriellie De Gouveia, class of 2028; Mimi Le, class of 2025. To qualify for the Dean’s List, students must pass four or more letter-graded courses with no failing grades during the semester and earn a GPA of 3.5 or higher. The College of the Holy Cross, which is located in Worcester, Mass., is among the nation’s leading liberal arts institutions. A highly selective, four-year, exclusively undergraduate college of BBB Scam Alert: 3,100 students, Holy Cross is renowned for offering a rigorous, personalized education in the Jesuit, Catholic tradition. Since its founding in 1843, Holy Cross has made a positive impact in society by graduating students who distinguish themselves as thoughtful leaders in business, professional and civic life. If We Happen To Meet By Accident ... You’ll Be Glad You Found Us! There is a difference between the rest and the BEST! Celebrating 46 Years In Business! TONY’S AUTO BODY Call or Visit 781-321-0032 34 Sharon Street Malden, MA 02148 TONYSAUTOBODYLLC.COM COME VISIT OUR STATE OF THE ART BODY SHOP • Computerized Paint Matching (State of the Art Spray Booth) • Computerized Frame Machines • P.P.G. Refinishing System • R134 + 1234yf A/C Machines Fully Insured -RS2415 Insurance Company Approval ALL OUR WORK IS GUARANTEED! TONY BARTOLO Owner 46 Years Let Us Handle Your Next Insurance Claim. Go With the BEST It Doesn’t Get BETTER! RENTAL CARS Available Watch out for SAT prep scams F or parents of high school students, SAT and ACT scores are a huge deal. With college admissions and scholarships on the line, paying for tutors and test prep materials may be worth the price. But watch out for con artists eager to take advantage of this. Scammers – with access to kids’ names and school information – are tricking parents into paying for bogus SAT and ACT prep materials. How the scam works: You get an unsolicited call from a person claiming to be from the College Board, the company responsible for the PSAT, SAT and AP tests, or another educational organization. The caller claims to be confi rming your address so they can send test prep materials, such as books, CDs or videos, that your child requested at school. It seems so believable! Several people reported to BBB Scam Tracker (https://www.bbb.org/ScamTracker) that the caller even had their child’s name, phone number, address, school information and/or the date and location of their child’s scheduled test. Of course, there’s a catch. The caller needs you to pay a deposit, sometimes several hundred dollars, for the materials. They claim it will be refunded when the materials are returned after a set number of days. Unfortunately, if you provide your address and credit card details, the materials will never arrive, and your deposit will never be refunded. Scammers now have your credit card number and other personal information. One person shared this experience on BBB Scam Tracker: “A woman called, saying that she was from the SAT/ACT College Board. She asked to speak to the parent/guardian of my daughter, and used her name. She said my daughter had checked the box at her registration, to receive study materials to be sent to her. The materials included access to an online tutor, papers, and two usb drives. The drives would need to be returned within 30 days or we would be charged for them. She was so smooth, she obviously had my number and acted as though she had my address and email already. When I asked, she gave easy instructions for returning the drives. Then she needed fi nancial information to hold the $250, in case we didn’t return the drives on time. This is where I balked, more at the price than thinking it was a scam. Once I told her that we didn’t need any of the items that bad, she ended the conversation fairly quickly. It wasn’t until after I hung up that I realized she didn’t even quote the correct date for an SAT exam and my daughter doesn’t remember checking any box for materials. It was then that I decided to look online to see if this was a scam. (Note: I was very distracted when I took this call and she sounded so legitimate, I nearly got scammed. Be wise whenever anyone asks for money!)” In another BBB Scam Tracker report, a consumer reported: “He called saying he was college prep for SAT and ACT. He said everything was free of charge and I just needed to put a card down so they have one in the books but when I gave her my card, it declined because I didn’t have enough cash on there, so he did not take any money due to insuffi cient funds, but I am just reporting the scam.” In a diff erent BBB Scam Tracker report, a consumer shared: “Caller, Carson, stated my son had requested SAT prep materials through College Board student services. He had my address, my son’s name, date and location of the SAT test my son is scheduled to take. Caller stated they needed parental permission prior to sending documents and that I needed to give him a credit card number for collateral. We would be sent the college SAT prep materials; the materials would be free of charge for 30 days and we would need to return the materials in the envelope provided and my card wouldn’t be charged. The caller stated they send email reminders prior to the return deadline and will send shipping confi rmation once the material package is mailed out. My card was charged $249.95 instantly.” Another consumer shared on BBB Scam Tracker: “I received a call from Brad [redacted] with College Prep Tutors. Stated that my daughter (knew her name) had requested ACT and SAT study prep materials. He said that they would be sent out via USPS and were free if returned within 30 days, but needed to charge my card to initiate the process, and that it would be refunded upon return of the USB materials. He sounded very legitimate and provided a confi rmation number. I WATCH OUT | SEE PAGE 23
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