The Big Picture

• Bad Education details the largest embezzlement scandal in American public education history.
• The film exposes the corruption of Superintendent Frank Tassone and his associates, leading to felony charges.
• The scandal in Roslyn was uncovered by the school newspaper, later resulting in significant media attention and legal consequences.

Schools are often known for drama, but very rarely have they reached the scale and immorality of the crime witnessed by a small New York district more than twenty years ago. Based upon aa 2004 New York Magazine article by Robert Kolker with a story as true as it was shocking, the film Bad Education details the discovery of the largest embezzlement scandal in the history of American public education. Starring Hugh Jackman and Allison Janney as Frank Tassone and Pamela Gluckin respectively, the film explores the extent of the graft from the two ringleaders and their colleagues, which was uncovered from the last source one might expect.

Exposed by the school newspaper, of all things, the conspiracy led to the theft of nearly $10 million dollars over several years and later resulted in felony charges for those involved. Although some details are changed for the sake of simplicity or dramatic effect, screenwriter Mark Makowsky gets most of the story right, having been a middle school student in the town at the time. A stunning tale of corruption and complicity, the scandal that engulfed Roslyn School District in New York led to unprecedented media attention for what had been an obscure town only months earlier and led to the disgrace and downfall of an entire ring of financial criminals.

Hugh Jackman's Frank Tassone Was Roslyn's Star

Before he became a widely hated national figure, school board member Frank Tassone was perceived as being the model superintendent in his small town of Roslyn, a leader beloved by both students and parents alike. For a man viewed as extremely likable, however, he also had spending habits that did not go wholly unnoticed. Strange as it might have been, no one could have anticipated that Tassone had effectively been putting on a front for so many years to conceal the scale of his larceny against the district itself. Living a double life unknown to all, the widower spent millions of stolen dollars on luxury trips to Las Vegas for an unapologetic life of excess as a closeted gay man, all while having an affair with a former student. Granted, the film itself exaggerates this slightly, as Frank was actually in an open relationship with his partner, and he publicly took offense at the idea that he secretly met with another man. While Frank might not have been a cheater, he was still certainly a crook, one responsible for embezzlement on an unprecedented scale.

Furthermore, Frank was not the sole benefactor from his fraudulent scheme, as subordinate Pamela “Pam” Gluckin was also involved. As an early conspirator in the scheme, Pam was unwittingly exposed by her son, who attempted to purchase construction materials with an unmarked credit card. Covering his own involvement, Frank betrayed Pam by having her abruptly forced into early retirement. Naturally, the school district felt betrayed and Tassone appeared to be just as outraged as everyone else, but justified her deal with the board as necessary to prevent public ridicule. Behind the scenes, however, Tassone expanded the racket by enveloping her niece, clerk Debra Riango, and even outside accountant Andrew Miller into the scheme. Unlike the film, where he is portrayed as suspicious of the events but later persuaded into dropping his complaints, Miller actively participated and helped conceal the scheme when it was initially discovered.

The Scandal in ‘Bad Education’ Was Exposed From an Unlikely Source

Although details of the investigation are mostly accurate, Bad Education takes some creative liberties with portraying exactly how the scandal came to light. Early in the film, Tassone meets young student Rachel Bhagavra (Geraldine Viswanathan) about her work for the school newspaper and encourages her to expand the scope of her story about the budget. The conversation depicted, however, did not occur and Bhagavra herself is merely a composite character of the newspaper staff. Primarily, she is based upon Beacon Hilltop chief editor Rebecka Rombom, who received an anonymous letter alleging financial misconduct by Gluckin. This, in turn, prompted the emergency school board meeting where Pam was discreetly fired, for which Rombom was present. Before serving as a brief consultant to Viswanathan for the role, Rombom recounted her role in exposing the scandal to major news outlets during the aftermath.

Despite its flaws, Bad Education does get one major portion of the student investigation right. While analyzing the finances of the school district, Rachel discovers that one such contractor, WordPower, is owned by CEO Steve Signorelli in a Manhattan apartment. Upon visiting, she learns that he is not a company executive at all, but instead Frank’s own domestic partner, who was involved with the scheme. Despite his later private attempts to dissuade her, Rachel publishes her findings in the local school newspaper, leading the major outlets to quickly follow suit and expose the scandal.

What Happened to 'Bad Education's Frank Tassone?

After his crimes were exposed, Frank was arrested, alongside his partner, Steve Signorelli, and Pam, in early 2002. Although Pam testified against Frank in exchange for a lighter prison sentence, Signorelli attempted to refuse under the doctrine of spousal privilege. The film implies that the exposure of the affair by the authorities convinced Steve to testify against Frank, but the truth was much more mundane than it looks at first glance. Since they were only domestic partners in New York, where gay marriage would not become legal for another decade, this immunity did not apply and both were required to testify against each other.

In the end, all the conspirators were given jail time for their embezzlement scheme, the largest in the history of American public education. Andrew Miller received four months in jail for his lesser charges, while Signorelli earned between one and three years in prison and Rigano was given two to six years. Pamela Gluckin was also given three to nine years for her theft of $5 million, serving her sentence in the same prison as her niece, before being released in 2011 and dying six years later. Finally, Frank reluctantly testified against his partner and was slapped with four to twelve years in prison. Despite being given the largest sentence, he was later released in 2010 for good behavior. Today, Frank is still alive and continues to earn his annual $173,495.04 pension from the school board due to an oversight in state regulations.

Overall, the story of Bad Education is a shocking one, exploring themes of both institutional complicity and individual corruption. The criminal actions by Frank Tassone, brought to life in the film with a great performance from its lead, and his small ring of conspirators speaks to how even the supposedly nicest people can still be capable of the darkest things, but even the residents of Roslyn have admitted they likely should have seen it coming. As Cornelia Channing wrote for Slate when discussing the accuracy of the film, his fascination with Charles Dickens was "also an appropriate one, given that, as one parent Kolker's article noted, Tassone - a deceitful man who profits off children while claiming to help them - seems like he could have hopped out of a Dickens novel."

Bad Education is available to watch on Max in the US.

Watch on Max