I was enrolled in 9 units, I dropped one class, and it caused me to be below 6, therefore my grant was revoked, and I now have to pay 6400. I was tolled that if I re enroll in the course, it will erase the fine, but now that I’m re enrolled, I’ve been tolled that it doesn’t make a difference.
Are there any options left?
TOLD
Talk to your FA office.
If you added a class after the census date, you are out of luck for any federal grants. If it’s an institutional grant, you may be able to persuade the school into giving back that grant. As @Erin’s Dad said, talk to your FA office. And don’t just call on the phone or talk to a student worker … make sure you talk to someone in the aid office who is in a position to help you.
I did go to the financial aid office, and the woman there told me that my only option is augment my loan, to pay for the fine, but there has to be something I can do. How can there be such a huge punishment for such a small infraction?
It is not punishment. The Federal government has rules on how to distribute the Federal student aid (aka the American taxpayers’ money). You need to follow the rules, period.
I know it’s semantics, but … is what you are paying actually a “fine?” It sounds to me like you owe more because you don’t have the grant money you expected. That is not a fine, and it is not a punishment. It is just how it is, unfortunately, since you don’t qualify for the grant.
$6400 is what you owe…well…since the maximum Pell for a full year is only $5800, this must be some other kind of grant.
Colleges award money based on your enrollment status as of a certain date. It sounds like you missed that date for federal grant purposes…and perhaps for your school grants. The ONLY way to deal with this is through your college.
If your school has an ombudsman, perhaps try there. Or see if you can speak to someone higher up on the financial aid chain.
But really…your enrollment status dropped below the threshold. It is very possible that you will need to pay this bill.