Colleges accepting fraudulent diplomas

[massmom5]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Indiana

A local, well established community college talked my daughter into obtaining a diploma through Belford High School to get her started in college. She was 7 months away from getting her home schooling diploma through the state. She was a teen mom at the time and was wanting to get information from this college to decide what she wanted to do after obtaining her high school diploma. The Admissions Counselor handed us a paper off his cork board and suggested she obtain her diploma early. We now find out this diploma isn't worth the paper it was printed on. The college made all these promises to help her get through school and are now giving her problems. My daughter got really sick and was not being able to keep up with her classes. She was being threatened with expulsion. She was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism and Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy at the same time. This has impacted her school work and they keep threatening her with expulsion. She has explained to them that her classes have to be less compacted because of the effects of not only the medication but the diseases them self leave her worn out. This college also has complete control over her finances and she has to fight them to get any of her left over grant money for college related living expenses (such as day care and bills like internet for online school). She can't even get a job with this so called diploma they talked her into. If they expel her from school her loans will come due. If she gets her degree an employer may not even accept this "high school" diploma. What should we do??

 

[Zigner]

You should try to convince your daughter to go back to school for her HS diploma if it is so important to her.

 

[csi7]

Get in touch with your state Education Department and keep track of everyone you talk to for this matter. Also the Department of Education for possible fraud on the school's part holding the federal funds instead of timely disbursement.
There are also options available for mothers of young children to get help and information as well.
By keeping track of everyone you speak with, times, dates, you will know who is returning information that helps you move forward.

 

[massmom5]

It's a little late now to return to her high school because all of her home schooling credits won't be worth anything. She worked hard to get to where she was only for a college official to screw it up for her. I'm wanting to know if there is any thing legally she can do at the point where she does obtain her degree but cannot get employment because of what they had her do. Also can they expel her for failing a class when she has medical problems?

 

[ecmst12]

If her diploma is no good then she needs to take the GED exam.

 

[Humusluvr]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Indiana

A local, well established community college talked my daughter into obtaining a diploma through Belford High School to get her started in college.

Was this the high school she should have attended, should she not be homeschooled?

She was 7 months away from getting her home schooling diploma through the state. She was a teen mom at the time and was wanting to get information from this college to decide what she wanted to do after obtaining her high school diploma. The Admissions Counselor handed us a paper off his cork board and suggested she obtain her diploma early. We now find out this diploma isn't worth the paper it was printed on.

What makes you say this?

The college made all these promises to help her get through school and are now giving her problems. My daughter got really sick and was not being able to keep up with her classes. She was being threatened with expulsion.

Did she fail her college courses? She would have had to fail multiple times to be on the verge of being expelled. Were you providing the medical documentation to the college?

She was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism and Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy at the same time. This has impacted her school work and they keep threatening her with expulsion. She has explained to them that her classes have to be less compacted because of the effects of not only the medication but the diseases them self leave her worn out.

Maybe the school is unable to meet her request. They have to meet certain standards in order to offer credits, and if your daughter can't complete them, then maybe this college is not for her.

This college also has complete control over her finances and she has to fight them to get any of her left over grant money for college related living expenses (such as day care and bills like internet for online school).

Student loans usually pay for the classes first, and then there is little left over, unless she lives on campus. There are problems right now with students taking out loans just to live, with no thought of completing a degree, and then defaulting on the loans. It's a national problem, and the schools and government need to fix it. So it's not just your daughter, it's the whole school loan process.

She can't even get a job with this so called diploma they talked her into.

Very few employers take just a high school diploma these days.

If they expel her from school her loans will come due. If she gets her degree an employer may not even accept this "high school" diploma. What should we do??

I would tell her to finish what she started. College is hard, and these loans will come due, so if she wants to be able to pay them off, she needs to get her college degree, and get a good job.

 

[Humusluvr]

If her diploma is no good then she needs to take the GED exam.

So I Googled Belford High School - and there are all kinds of reports on it being a scam. Any time a school offers to give you a degree if you pay money and not do work, you should be weary.

*edited to add*

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/PersonalFinance/online-schools-scam-students-fake-degrees/story?id=8322412

At least your daughter didn't try to practice medicine on anyone, like this person did!

 

[massmom5]

Humusluvr

She was a junior at our local high school when she got pregnant and it was easier for her to home school through the state of Indiana and get her diploma. Home school diploma's are unaccredited just like a GED but she would have been able to graduate in a ceremony just like other home schooled kids.

She has not failed any courses yet, but she was on the verge of failing one when she got so sick and was having seizures which left her with out any energy at all. That is when they said they would expel her, just for 1 class. They agreed to let her pick it up later when her course work wasn't so heavy because this was a more difficult class. Now they are throwing the class back in again with a heavy work load and saying if she doesn't take it now they will expel her. They have never asked for documentation of her being sick, which we can obtain if needed. They are still trying to get her levels lowered for the hypothyroidism and still adjusting her anti seizure meds.

My whole point to this questioning is I think this college is being fraudulent in obtaining students by having them get fake high school diplomas. They don't seem to care how they get their students as long as they are getting money. But my point is what happens when she applies for a job with her degree and then they ask for her high school diploma?? Her college degree might not be worth anything then.

 

[Humusluvr]

Humusluvr

She was a junior at our local high school when she got pregnant and it was easier for her to home school through the state of Indiana and get her diploma. Home school diploma's are unaccredited just like a GED but she would have been able to graduate in a ceremony just like other home schooled kids.

She has not failed any courses yet, but she was on the verge of failing one when she got so sick and was having seizures which left her with out any energy at all. That is when they said they would expel her, just for 1 class. They agreed to let her pick it up later when her course work wasn't so heavy because this was a more difficult class. Now they are throwing the class back in again with a heavy work load and saying if she doesn't take it now they will expel her. They have never asked for documentation of her being sick, which we can obtain if needed. They are still trying to get her levels lowered for the hypothyroidism and still adjusting her anti seizure meds.

My whole point to this questioning is I think this college is being fraudulent in obtaining students by having them get fake high school diplomas. They don't seem to care how they get their students as long as they are getting money. But my point is what happens when she applies for a job with her degree and then they ask for her high school diploma?? Her college degree might not be worth anything then.

But the community college is accredited, right? So if they took this HS diploma, it would be just as good to an employer.

Google the community's colleges disablilty services or accommodation services, get them the medical documentation, and ask for help in completing. Colleges are much more interested in people actually finishing their degrees, because that gets them more money from the state. If the student doesn't finish, the school doesn't get federal funding.