Is Samantha Steele Claiming a Fake College Degree from a Defunct College?
- Frank Calabrese
- 3 days ago
- 2 min read
Cook County Board of Review Commissioner Steele’s LinkedIn profile touts a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Kent Institute of Art & Design, a institution based in the United Kingdom that ceased operations in 2005. Further, when Steele sought employment with the Cook County Assessor's Office in 2018, she asserted that she possessed a bachelor's degree, which was a requirement for the position she was applying for. The role, Director of Commercial Valuations, explicitly stated in its job description that candidates must have a bachelor's degree to be eligible for consideration. In December 2018, Steele was hired for this role within the Assessor's Office.
However, emails released through FOIA indicate that, contrary to her claims of holding a bachelor's degree, Steele only reported having a high school diploma to the International Association of Assessing Officers (IAAO) during the verification of her credentials.
In the emails, from April 2023, Samantha Steele is asked by an IAAO credentialing official to provide proof of a college degree. Steele later submits to the IAAO her high school transcripts from Lafayette High School in Indiana. For the IAAO designation that she was applying for, the Assessment Administration Specialist (AAS) designation, IAAO requires allows a high school diploma in lieu of a high school diploma if additional work experience requirements are satisfied.
The accompanying resume submitted to the IAAO omits any reference to a college degree. It is apparent that Samantha Steele is falsely claiming a college degree on her LinkedIn page. Further, in her Oct. 9, 2010 Journal & Courier candidate bio for Tippecanoe County Assessor, she listed McCutcheon High School as her highest education.
Steele’s public-facing bios suggest a completed college degree. Yet when it mattered for a professional credential, she documented only high school. Yet her IAAO credentials and her 2010 bio are strong evidence that Steele does not have a college degree.
