Texas attorney general sues Cedar Hill couple over prep school

by Brian Allen of Best Southwest Citizen

A Cedar Hill couple is in some serious legal trouble due to selling college prep software with some practices that have raised eyebrows. Attorney General Greg Abbott has announced a suit against Frances and John Joseph Stuart, owners of the ACT and SAT Prep Center. Abbott’s office is seeking $250,000 in fines.

The company has drawn Better Business Bureau complaints for things such as selling outdated software at outlandish prices, having telemarketers lie to parents by saying their children had inquired about the software, and charging people for info they didn’t receive.

The Stuarts ran a similar business in California, which closed after numerous complaints. They have closed the ACT and SAT Prep Center, which operated out of Coppell, and are opening under a third name with a downtown Dallas address filed. The state comptroller’s office says the Stuarts owe some $29,000 in sales tax.

In addition to those complaints, John Stuart is charged with failing to register as a sex offender. The Dallas Morning News reported that Stuart informed Cedar Hill police of a 2003 conviction for sexual exploitation of a child, but didn’t disclose any details about his job. The Coppell address of the ACT and SAT Prep Center was near both a daycare and a middle school.