In the Republic of Georgia, about 240 institutions of higher education serve a population of 5 million. On the surface, these numbers suggest a prosperous, highly educated society. Behind this facade, however, lies a reality of degraded standards, crumbling infrastructure, rampant academic fraud, and deteriorating educational quality. At the center of this predicament is pervasive, systemic corruption. Economic, institutional, and organizational inadequacies have brought about an extralegal system of university governance that adheres to few ethical norms or standards. The passivity of the Georgian people and their willingness to accept the status quo have only exacerbated these deficiencies.