DONKEY: 28-Year-Old Poses As H.S. Student To Increase Friend’s Public Assistance Benefits

Summary

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Donkey of the Day: 28-Year-Old Poses As H.S. Student To Increase Friend’s Public Assistance Benefits

Podcast: Donkey of the Day (Power 105.1 The Breakfast Club)
Host: Charlamagne Tha God, DJ Envy, Jessica B. Harris, K. Foxx
Date: May 13, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Charlamagne Tha God gives the "Donkey of the Day" award to Casey Classen, a 28-year-old woman from the Bronx, for impersonating a 16-year-old and enrolling in a New York City high school in an attempt to help her friend receive increased public assistance benefits. The discussion is characteristically irreverent, mixing humor with pointed social and systemic critique, especially regarding mental health and the failures of America’s safety nets.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Story: Fraudulent High School Enrollment (02:46)

• Case Overview

  • Casey Classen, 28, successfully posed as a teen, enrolled at Westchester Square Academy under the false name “Shamarra Rashad.”
  • She claimed her friend pressured her into it, to increase the friend’s eligibility for public assistance programs.

• Exposure

  • The principal grew suspicious after finding a Facebook page with different birth information and later confronted Casey.
  • She confessed her real identity when shown her Facebook profile, stating, "I lied about my identity because my friend forced me to. She was using me to receive more public assistance." (03:30)

• Charges

  • Facing charges of criminal impersonation and trespassing; pleaded not guilty.

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2. Social Commentary and Satirical Analysis

• Hollywood Comparisons

  • Charlamagne humorously compares Casey’s scheme to adult actors playing teenagers, referencing Andrew Garfield (“29 playing 17”) and Stacey Dash in Clueless (“28 playing 17”).
    • “She was watching those and got a bright idea: to pose as a 16-year-old high school student named Shamarra Rashad.” (04:18)

• Systemic Critique

  • The crew highlights the desperation behind such acts, blaming a lack of adequate social services.
  • “Times are so hard that you got people willing to pose as high school students so they can get more food stamps, more Medicaid… Financial issues will lead people to do something strange for a piece of change. OK?” (05:35)
  • “That’s why America is a failed project. We don’t have resources to take care of the most vulnerable amongst us on any level.” (07:37)

• Mental Health Context

  • DJ Envy shares a NY Post article reporting Casey’s background—abusive marriage, time in a psych ward, history of mental illness.
  • There’s mention of a possible human trafficking angle, complicating the simple narrative of fraud.

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3. Critique of School Administration

• Failure to Notice

  • Charlamagne holds the school accountable: “The powers that be at Westchester Square Academy, y’all deserve the biggest hee haw too for allowing her to enroll. How the hell did this slip through the cracks for two weeks?” (08:08)
  • He continues, poking fun at obvious signs of Casey’s age:
    • “Did you think those crows feet behind the glasses were from failing a driver’s test?” (08:33)
    • “Her knees sounded like popcorn popping in the microwave when she sat at those desks.” (08:47)

• Social Commentary on The Bronx

  • Bluntly jokes, “Because every student in the Bronx already looks exhausted from life… That’s why nobody noticed she was 28.” (08:54)
  • DJ Envy backs this up: “Most of the stories are from the Bronx that are crazy. ... there’s a lot of students in the Bronx that already look exhausted from life.” (09:31)

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4. Lighter Moments & Banter

• Credit Card Fraud Bit

  • Brief humorous tangent: Jessica B. Harris jokes about her past with credit card scams, “I can look at a credit card one time and know all 16 digits and the CVV code.” (05:53)

• Visual Curiosity

  • The crew openly expresses curiosity and amusement about how Casey could pass for a high school student:
    • “Do we got a picture of Shorty? ... She got to do that for two weeks?” (09:42)
    • “Text me real quick... I see the bubbles. Oh no, Jess, you said Love on the Spectrum…” (10:22)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Charlamagne Tha God:
  “I must be honest and say that Florida overwhelmingly dominates that versus battle. OK? Not because there isn’t enough nut-ass stories coming from the Bronx. It’s simply because Florida foolishness is different than others. But today the Bronx wins.” (02:46)

• DJ Envy:
  “First of all, you should have known she was old ‘cause she had a Facebook page.” (04:33)

• Charlamagne Tha God (on the school’s lapse):
  “It took Facebook to catch her. What gave it away? Her throwback Thursday from when she was 16 in 2014?” (08:33)

• Jessica B. Harris:
  “I can look at a credit card one time and know all 16 digits on the front and a little CVV code.” (05:53)

• Charlamagne Tha God:
  “That’s why America is a failed project. We don’t have resources to take care of the most vulnerable amongst us on any level.” (07:37)

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Important Timestamps

• [02:46] – Case introduced; details from the news report.
• [03:30] – News clip: Casey’s confession and motives.
• [04:33] – DJ Envy’s Facebook clue joke; Hollywood adult-as-teen references.
• [05:35] – Motive for scam; discussion of public assistance desperation.
• [05:53] – Jessica B. Harris credit card scam joke.
• [07:37] – Charlamagne’s systemic critique of America’s safety nets.
• [08:08] – Criticism of the school administration’s failure.
• [08:33] – “Throwback Thursday” and physical appearance jokes.
• [08:54] – Satire: “Every student in the Bronx already looks exhausted from life.”
• [09:42] – Crew speculates about Casey’s ability to pass as a teen.

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Conclusion

This “Donkey of the Day” episode is a blend of humor and biting commentary, using a bizarre fraud case to explore deeper societal issues of poverty, mental health, and institutional incompetence. The hosts skewer not just the perpetrator but also the broader systems—and administrators—that allow such absurdity to occur. The episode closes with laughs but leaves listeners reflecting on the failures that push people to desperate acts.

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Transcript

[Charlamagne Tha God]

This is an iHeart podcast.

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[Robert Smigel]

Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy not quite on Humor Me with Robert Smigel and Friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier this week. My guests SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel help an acapella band with their between songs banter.

[DJ Envy]

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes.

[Robert Smigel]

Those people are starving for banter. Listen to Humor Me with Robert Smigel and friends on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Dani Shapiro]

Your husband is not who you think he is. Your body is not what you thought it was. Your identity is formed by a secret history. I'm Dani Shapiro and these are just a few of the stunning stories I'll be exploring on the 14th season of Family Secrets.

[Family Secrets Guest]

He kind of shoved me out of the way and said move. And he went out the front door and he jumped in a car and drove off and that was the last time I saw him.

[Dani Shapiro]

Listen to season 14 of Family Secrets on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Psychology of Your 20s Host]

Your twenties can be so exciting, but they can also be really overwhelming, confusing, and honestly, just kind of lonely. May is Mental Health Awareness Month and the psychology of your twenties is breaking down the science behind the biggest roadblocks we face.

[DJ Envy]

I was six years into my career,

[Dr. Maya Shankar]

the 80 hour weeks and just the

[News Reporter]

first one in the last one and

[DJ Envy]

I ended up burning out. There was a large chunk of my

[Family Secrets Guest]

twenties that I like was just so

[News Reporter]

wanting to like be out of that

[DJ Envy]

phase out of my skin and I just like really regret not living in the present more.

[Psychology of Your 20s Host]

You don't need to have everything figured out right now. You just need to understand yourself a little bit better. Listen to the psychology of your 20s on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[DJ Envy]

Craziest people in America. I really got Bronx Trunk.

[Dish Network Advertiser]

It's time for Donkey of the Day.

[DJ Envy]

We in the Bronx shutting us down. We in the concourse with A co. The craziest people in America come from the Bronx and all of Florida.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

He lied.

[News Reporter]

Why does the Sunshine State consistently produce such strange news?

[Charlamagne Tha God]

If I catch all ass I'm with

[DJ Envy]

her, my gender and y' all gonna

[Charlamagne Tha God]

sit down on set.

[DJ Envy]

It is just one of the many wacky news stories out of Florida on the Breakfast Club. You know, donkey. Today for Wednesday, May 13th goes to a 28 year old Bronx woman named Casey Klassen. Now every other I get on this radio and I tell y' all that the craziest people in America come from the Bronx and all of Florida. And I must be honest and say that Florida overwhelmingly dominates. That versus battle. Okay? Not because there isn't enough nut ass stories coming from the Bronx. It's simply because Florida foolishness is different than others. But today the Bronx wins. Okay? And it's not even close. See, Casey Classen is 28 years old. 2 8. And she is accused of posing as a teenager at a New York City high school for two weeks. Let's go to News 12 for the report please.

[News Reporter]

28 year old woman was impersonating a teenager. She successfully enrolled at this school and her name is Casey Classen. Now according to the criminal complaint, Classen is facing criminal impersonation and trespassing charges. Court records show she pled not guilty to both. The document goes on to say on April 13th she enrolled as a student at Westchester Square Academy under the name Shamarra Rashad with the birthday March 8, 20, 2010, which would make her 16 years old. The principal then saw a Facebook page with her photo and a different birthday and confronted her about it. He first asked her for her information. She said, my name is Shamara Rashad. I'm 16 years old, I'm from Ohio. I came to New York with my sister. Then he showed her the Facebook page and asked if that was her. She said yes. My real name is Casey Clown. My real date of birth is July 29, 1997. I'm not Shamarra Rashad. I. I'm not 16 years old. I lied about my identity because my friend forced me to. She was using me to receive more public assistance.

[DJ Envy]

First of all, you should have known she was old cuz she had a Facebook page. Facebook page, okay. And I feel Casey was on YouTube and she came across the fact that Andrew Garfield played Peter Parker when he was 29. Yes. The 29 year old playing a 17 year old. I feel like Casey was on X and saw someone post how Stacy Dash was 28 playing a 17 year old in Clueless. I feel like Casey was watching a Breakfast Club interview with Full Force. Salute to the good brothers. Full Force. Drop on the food bombs for Full Force. I feel like she was watching them discuss how they were all in their late 20s, early 30s, playing the role of high school teenagers in House party. Okay. I feel like she saw those things and got a bright idea. And that bright idea was to pose as a 16 year old high school student named Shamar Rashad. Okay? She did all of that allegedly so her friend could receive more public assistance benefits. Times are so hard that you got people willing to pose as high school students so they can get more food stamps, more Medicaid, maybe just some temporary assistance in the form of cash, commonly called welfare. Maybe she needs some assistance with housing and utilities. I don't know what she needed. I don't know what her friend needs. I just know they needed some type of public assistance and she was willing to pose as a 16 year old to get some. Jess, what kind of type of fraud did you commit when you were trying to get that type of stuff back in the day?

[Jessica B. Harris]

Damn credit card.

[DJ Envy]

I was.

[Jessica B. Harris]

I was real heavy on them credit cards. I can look at a credit card one time and know all 16 digits on the front and a little CVV code.

[DJ Envy]

Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay. Now, I read another story in the New York Post where Casey says she spent three years in a psych ward. Okay. She said she fled an abusive marriage and struggled with an eating disorder and that landed her in a psych ward. She clearly suffers from some severe mental health issues. Someone who knows her who goes by the last name Rogers, told the New York Post that they last communicated with Casey in 2018. And they said they feared that the young woman had been human trafficked and may have been sent to the high school to recruit others. She just a mule. She a mule for public assistance and possibly for human trafficking. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Okay? Casey said back when she was 25, she lost custody of her 2 year old daughter because of her financial issues. Financial issues will lead people to do something strange for a piece of change. Okay? And losing your daughter definitely will. And that's why America is a failed project. We don't have resources to take care of the most vulnerable amongst us on any level. Casey needs to be receiving high levels of psychiatric treatment and her basic needs should be taken care of. Hell, there should be some type of support for her 2 year old as well. But when you have people like this just roaming the streets with no assistance, can't get no snap. That's when they snap and and usually end up risking it all and enrolling as a 16 year old high school student when you are 28. I have empathy for her, but you know who I don't have empathy for? The Bronx. Okay, look, I feel it in my heart, in my spirit, in my bones that she could only get this off anywhere in Florida, in the Bronx. Okay, yes, she deserves the biggest he haw for enrolling in Westchester Square Academy, but the powers that be at Westchester Square Academy, y' all deserve the biggest Hee haw too for allowing her to enroll. How the hell did this slip through the cracks for two weeks? Does she look young? Yes, but she also looks a little weathered. Okay, just the fact that she told y' all she was 16, just because she's frail with glasses doesn't mean she's 16. And it took Facebook to catch her. What gave it away? Her throwback Thursday from when she was 16 in 2014. Huh? Westchester. What did y' all think when you saw those crows feet behind the glasses? You thought she was stressed from failing a driver's test? Two weeks. Two weeks she was at that school. I know for a fact when she sat in those tiny little desks, her knees sounded like popcorn popping in the microwave. And you know the reality? The reality that nobody noticed she was 28. You know why nobody noticed that? Because every student in the Bronx already looks exhausted from life. It's just true. You know what? Let's give Casey, Classen and the administration at Westchester Square Academy the sweet sounds of the Hamiltons. That's what it was. It didn't come to me till the end, sure, but that's what it was.

[Jessica B. Harris]

You literally said every student in the Bronx.

[DJ Envy]

That's what came to me.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

I got little cousins and they don't look stressed out.

[Jessica B. Harris]

Right.

[DJ Envy]

That's what came to me at the end. That's why she was able to get. Well, not all of them.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

What did somebody from the Bronx do to me?

[DJ Envy]

First of all, you don't watch the news. Then if you watch the news to you personally, all you gotta do is watch the news and you will see that the craziest people in America come from the Bronx and all of Florida watch the local news here in New York just one time.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

I be listening to 10 to 1.

[DJ Envy]

Most of the stories are from the Bronx that are crazy. Geez, I'm telling you. But I'm. It came to me at the end. That's why nobody noticed. Yo, because all there's a lot of students in the Bronx that already look exhausted from life.

[Jessica B. Harris]

Nah, but that's wild. Do we got a picture of Shorty? Because, like, for her to look.

[DJ Envy]

You want to see her?

[Charlamagne Tha God]

I want to see her. What was her name?

[Jessica B. Harris]

One more time. She got to do that for two weeks.

[DJ Envy]

You said two weeks.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

What was her full name?

[DJ Envy]

Casey. Classen. K A C Y C L A A S E, N I think.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Oh, man, we can't.

[DJ Envy]

Why y' all say

[Charlamagne Tha God]

what you thinking over there playing a jazz?

[DJ Envy]

Did y' all cut it out? Why y' all say oh like that? Why y' all say oh like that? Tell me why you said oh. Matter of fact, don't tell me why y' all said oh. Yeah.

[Jessica B. Harris]

Nah. Cause you know I'd be in trouble, like a month.

[DJ Envy]

Text me.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Yeah, all right.

[DJ Envy]

Text me real quick. Yeah, text me, Jeff.

[Jessica B. Harris]

That's good.

[DJ Envy]

I see the bubbles. Oh, no, Jess, you said love on the spectrum. You need to. Hey, yo, speaking of love.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Stop.

[DJ Envy]

Mimi Brown. Didn't Mimi have a topic earlier about dating?

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Mimi said, people not dating because we broke.

[DJ Envy]

I thought this was interesting.

[K. Foxx]

Exactly what I said. Okay, okay, so real question for all the single people out there, can you even afford to date? Because according to a new report, you. Nearly half of single Americans say dating is no longer financially worth it. So researchers, they found that the average date night in America costs between 200 to $250 just for one date that included drinks, dinner, drinks, transportation, Just getting ready. Okay. Everything's gone up. Restaurant prices, ticket, date ticket, movie tickets, dating app subscriptions. So people are like, I'm just not dating anymore. They're scaling it back and they're swapping it out for cooking at home, maybe walks in the park.

[DJ Envy]

You can't do that if you're dating. Right? Because you're not just somebody's house.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

It depends on where you are. Y' all could do a first date walk in the park. That's cute. Yeah, you can.

[DJ Envy]

Or you can have a picnic.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Yeah, you still gotta buy things for the picnic, though.

[K. Foxx]

That's that part.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

280 walking is free.

[DJ Envy]

A picnic is not cheaper than 280. Go to Subway.

[Jessica B. Harris]

Right, exactly. You go to subway, then you go to five and below and you get what a little blanket gets. Like some little. You know what I'm saying?

[DJ Envy]

I ain't even get no blanket. We gonna get on the grass. We got the subway.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

That's cuz he from the south and he just think we are up there

[K. Foxx]

the on the grass. So here's the question. How Are we dating in this economy, ladies, do we still expect the red carpet rolled out? Are we cool with something like grabbing coffee, sitting on the grass, eating subway sandwiches?

[Jessica B. Harris]

I've always liked stuff like that. That's how you really get to know somebody.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Yeah, you.

[Jessica B. Harris]

You get to really know a person, you know.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Okay.

[DJ Envy]

I wish you would buy me somewhere with all that scamming you was doing back in the day with your credit cards. You had paper. We going to talk about it when we come back. 1-800-585-1051. Call us right now. It's the Breakfast Club. Donkey Today is sponsored by renowned personal injury attorney Michael the Bull Laminsoft. Don't be a donkey when you need a fighter on your side. If you're ever injured, go to Michael the Bull dot com. That's Michael the Bull dot com. And when you mess with the bull, you get the horns.

[News Reporter]

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[Robert Smigel]

Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy not quite on Humor Me with Robert Smigel and Friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier this week. My guests SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel help an acapella band with their between songs banter.

[DJ Envy]

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes.

[Robert Smigel]

Those people are starving for banter. Listen to Humor Me with Robert Smigel and friends on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Dani Shapiro]

Your husband is not who you think he is. Your body is not what you thought it was. Your identity is formed by a secret history. I'm Dani Shapiro and these are just a few of the stunning stories I'll be exploring on the 14th season of Family Secrets.

[Family Secrets Guest]

He kind of shoved me out of the way and said move. And he went out the front door and he jumped in a car and drove off. And that was the last time I saw him.

[Dani Shapiro]

Listen to season 14 of Family Secrets on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Dr. Maya Shankar]

Hey, I'm Dr. Maya Shankar, a cognitive scientist and host of the podcast A Slight Change of Plans. A show about who we are and who we become when life makes other plans.

[Dani Shapiro]

I wish that I hadn't resisted for so long the need to change.

[DJ Envy]

We have to be willing to live with a kind of uncertainty that none of us likes. You can have opinions, you can have,

[Psychology of Your 20s Host]

like, a strong stance. And then there's your body having its own program.

[Dr. Maya Shankar]

Listen to a slight change of plans on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.