A fundraiser at a North Carolina middle school sold students 20 test points for a $20 donation.

That's enough to raise a B to an A on two tests, or a failing score to a D, The News & Observer reports.

Or at least it did until the newspaper began asking questions, and the Wayne County school administrators ordered Goldsboro Middle School to stop the fundraiser.

They also issued this statement:

Yesterday afternoon, the district administration met with [Rosewood Middle School principal] Mrs. Shepherd and directed the following actions be taken: (1) the fundraiser will be immediately stopped; (2) no extra grade credit will be issued that may have resulted from donations; and (3) beginning November 12, all donations will be returned.

Susie Shepherd told the newspaper that a parent advisory council had come up with the idea and that she had endorsed it. She said the council is looking for a new way to raise money.

"Last year, they did chocolates, and it didn't generate anything," she says.

Shepherd tells the paper the extra points would not have made a difference in a student's final grade, which covers nine weeks of work.

CINCINNATI (AP) -- Chad Ochocinco's pretend $1 bribe is going to cost him a lot more. The Cincinnati Bengals receiver was fined $20,000 and reprimanded by the NFL for taking a dollar bill onto the field during an officials' review of one of his catches last Sunday. Ochocinco held the dollar in his right hand at his side but didn't give it to the official, who motioned for him to stay away.

Ochocinco said he was just having fun, but the league didn't like it.

Ray Anderson, the league's executive vice president of football operations, sent Ochocinco a letter that said: "The very appearance of impropriety is not acceptable. Your conduct was unprofessional and unbecoming an NFL player."

The letter cited league rules that prohibit abusive, threatening or insulting language or gestures toward officials. The letter also noted that players are prohibited from taking items onto the field that are not part of their uniform. The league has cracked down on players using props for celebrations.

During the third quarter of Cincinnati's 17-7 win over the Baltimore Ravens, officials initially ruled that Ochocinco got both feet down at the sideline for a 15-yard catch. The Ravens challenged, and the call was overturned when replays showed the receiver's toe landed on the white sideline.

While the play was under review, Ochocinco walked toward the officials with the dollar bill.

American shoppers are splitting again: The affluent are finally starting to buy, picking up designer clothes at places like Nordstrom, while those on the lower economic rungs are still scrimping by, heading to Walmart for the basics.

Recent earnings reports from major retailers suggest that the wealthy, who pulled back their spending the hardest during the financial meltdown last fall, are once again being enticed to open their wallets and going back to higher-end outlets.

"It's a good sign, but we don't see the same across the board," said Richard Hastings, a consumer strategist with Global Hunter Securities LLC.

It's still a far cry from the era of conspicuous consumption. No matter the tax bracket, people are still focused on value and trying to avoid overspending - whatever that might mean to them.

Luxury chains like Nordstrom Inc. and Bloomingdale's, owned by Macy's Inc., say shoppers are spending again on items like shoes and dresses, but still shopping for lower prices and classic pieces that get a lot of use.

On the other hand, discounters like Wal-Mart Stores Inc. are lowering prices even further to coax their less-well-off shoppers to keep spending. And it's not on anything glamorous. We're talking basics, like food and socks.

Think of it as two different groups as the economy recovers - spenders and savers.