<p>I attended a community college for one semester and one month of the following. Everything was payed for by federal grants. Due to situations out of my control, I was forced to drop out of school. A hold was placed on my record and now that I am ready to attend the same community college this fall, I am unable to register for classes. I am completely willing and able to pay whatever the school says I owe them, but is there any way I can do this while attending the same school this fall? Should I consider academic bankruptcy? </p>
<p>Some things to know: </p>
<ol>
<li>I am fighting to get declared as an independent on my FAFSA as my parents have both taken my financial aid money the previous year as well as refusing to provide their tax information.</li>
<li>I have all the proper documention I need to prove that I have been supporting myself completely.</li>
</ol>
<p>Typically a hold on your account means you will not be allowed to register for any classes until it is resolved. Since you withdrew from classes for which there was financial aid, the likely issue is that whatever was provided in aid for that incomplete semester has to be paid back before you can register for any classes because of your failure to complete the semester and I don’t know how you will be able to pay that amount which could be substantial if it was a large per semester grant. You should be discussing this issue with whatever persons or departments have been designated to deal with financial holds with the student and you should be doing that now, not later.</p>
<p>Whether you can establish financial independence is also something you must take up with the particular college.</p>
<p>Luckily, it is not a large amount. When I called earlier to set up my appointment, I was told it was only $1800. I have an appointment with them set up for Monday of this week.</p>
<p>Worst case scenario is that I will have to wait until Spring 2013 to go back to school.</p>
<p>^Check the actual rules for your community college on that issue. CCs very often have a registration period that might end soon but they very often allow late registrations throughout the summer as long as there is still space in a class so find out what yours actually does because you might have more time than you think.</p>
<p>Ask this question very plainly of the school: “Exactly what do I have to do to lift the hold and register for classes for Fall and by when do I need to do each step?” Gather all the names, websites, phone numbers, addresses, amounts, etc. as quickly as possible and do it. Be prepared to plead your case for financial independence by writing out a clear explanation, but realize that there could be legal questions involved. Do your research on this on the internet at least and call whatever agencies or school officers you need to to find out how to do this. I hear it’s not easy. Remain calm and don’t get too detailed about your parents. My concern is that if you say they took your finaid money, there could be legal complications for them that you may regret stirring up versus just cutting your losses and moving forward. It sound like a legal question for an attorney, but see what you can find out. Often you can get an attorney to talk to you on the phone for twenty minutes free if you get a referral from the state board.</p>