Karen Littlefair

Littlefair is among more than 50 people charged in a college admissions scandal that ensnared dozens of wealthy parents. Many are accused of falsely portraying their children as athletic recruits to get them into elite universities, while others are alleged to have paid to rig their children’s SAT or ACT exams. She pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. She previously agreed to the plea in a deal with prosecutors and is to be sentenced May 13. The charge carries up to 20 years in prison, but prosecutors said they will recommend four months and a $9,500 fine. Prosecutors say Littlefair hired Singer’s company to take four online classes on behalf of her son so he could graduate from Georgetown in 2018. Three of the courses were taken through Georgetown, prosecutors said, while one was taken online at Arizona State University and then transferred to Georgetown. Littlefair paid a total of about $9,200. Her son graduated from the private university in Washington in May 2018. The school previously said it has the authority to revoke degrees if serious misconduct is discovered after a student graduates, but officials have not said whether they took action against Littlefair’s son. Karen Littlefair has an interior design firm on Lido Isle. She is the wife of Andrew Littlefair, president and CEO of Clean Energy Fuels, a company he founded with T. Boone Pickens in 1997. Andrew Littlefair was not charged in the case.