<p>Luliztee - she can go to a "higher" school if she is willing to go out of the NE, it is as simple, and as difficult as that.
Try to get her to think outside the box a little - she is a very lopsided student - 700s and a 490???. Plus demonstrated talent and accomplishment in art. Does she really want or need to take any other quantitative courses? I would have her keep that in mind while looking at colleges. A college with many core or distributive requirements might not be the best choice for her, she might be better off with a school where she could take some accounting/finance/business type courses to help her if she decided to run her own art-related business.</p>
<p>I have a couple of suggestions - a friend of mine has an arty daughter at the Savannah School of Art and Design. It has limited liberal arts majors, including creative writing, but a wide variety of art and art-related majors. It is a recruitment site for Pixar, for example, and at the other end of the spectrum, has provided training for many of the historical preservation and restorers in the South. Much of the school is housed in historic Savannah buildings that the students themselves have worked to restore.
Another possiblity that has other issues, including recent bad press over safety issues is VCU - Va Commonwealth in Richmond - it has some specific strengths in visual arts that she might consider.</p>
<p>Another option that might or might not be helpful - some of the more financial gurus may weigh in - a gap year. If your family is filing Chapter 13, will waiting a year affect how income will look in one year?
Finally, finance gurus, would it help for them to get an FA evaluation from a need based school, perhaps one of the Catholic ones would be open to helping a Catholic family? Filling out the FAFSA will let you know to some extent - if you faint from the EFC alone, it is unlikely that a need-based school will ever be able to help you, but if the EFC is at all close to what you think you can afford, perhaps having a pro look over a complicated financial situation can help.</p>
<p>If you can get her beyond the NE, I can think of several good LACs in the South alone that might be doable with a $20000 parental contribution - time to have a serious talk with her about what she really wants.</p>