Darton's 2016 Nursing Students

Hello everyone!  We are Darton State Nursing Students, set to graduate December 9th with our Associate Degrees, and as you can imagine are very excited to be nearing the end of a long and challenging program.  Last week we were notified by Darton's Office of Financial Aid that there had been a mistake made when processing our financial aid packages and that funds that were already released to us back in September 2016 had been returned to the Department of Education.  We were then informed that we now owe balances ranging from $700-$1700 to Darton State College.  We are the first to acknowledge that mistakes happen and understand the situation; however, we were given only two options: 1. Pay the balance immediately.  Or 2.  Sign a Letter of Intent to pay the balances no later than March 1, 2017; and until those balances are paid, our diplomas will not be released from the school and we will only be allotted one official transcript to be used; for either taking our boards for licensing or to provide to a future employer.  The story of this debacle aired on WALB last week and a member of the community contacted the students immediately and offered to donate funds to help those of us struggling to find the funds to pay these balances.  We are intelligent, strong, driven people.  We are willing to work for anything and everything we have and will have; the proof is in our dedication and determination to complete a rigorous curriculum with the hopes of being able to become registered nurses and provide care and compassion to members of our community.  We have worked diligently to earn these diplomas and the rights to our transcripts but after paying fees for graduation, fees for licensing, fees for our board exams, and all other fees associated with the Darton Nursing Program, we do not have the funds to pay these balances that we were just recently notified about.  Thank you for your support!  We hope to one day be able to provide the same support and encouragement our community has so graciously given to us!