Her Story

If you were just notified that your Borrower Defense to Repayment application was approved, your life just changed. Theresa Sweet helped make that possible.

She made a choice over a decade ago: to fight. Not for herself. For you. For the hundreds of thousands of borrowers trapped in a broken system, defrauded by predatory for-profit schools and left holding impossible debt.

What followed was nearly a decade of relentless advocacy. Court battles. Federal settlements. Appeals. Death threats. She endured all of it, and she never walked away.

"We are looking at TWELVE BILLION DOLLARS. That's bigger than the Enron and Purdue Pharma settlements. We have been part of something that has SMASHED records. I am shook." — Theresa Sweet

The Borrowers Defense to Repayment decision became one of the largest student debt relief actions in American history. Bigger than Enron. Bigger than Purdue Pharma. Hundreds of thousands of borrowers who were once drowning in debt they were tricked into are now receiving loan forgiveness notices in their inboxes. Some will receive refunds of thousands, even tens of thousands, of dollars.

Theresa is not one of them.

While the cause consumed her life, Theresa lost work. She has spent two and a half years searching for employment. She has faced death threats for standing up for borrowers. And today, as the people she fought for are celebrating their relief, she is barely making ends meet.

This campaign is for Theresa. Not for an organization. Not for a nonprofit. For the woman who refused to quit, even when quitting would have been the rational, self-preserving thing to do.

Why $100?

Many of you were paying $500, $600, $1,000 or more every single month in student loan payments. Some of you will receive refunds of thousands of dollars because of the work Theresa did on your behalf.

Victoria L (who set-up this fundraiser and is fellow former student) is asking for one month, or even just a fraction of one month, of what you used to pay. A one-time gift of $100 or more for T is our suggested minimum. That is it. One time. For someone who gave years of her life fighting for you.

Give back to the woman who gave everything!

Your loan is forgiven. Your financial future is brighter. Theresa helped made that possible. The least we can do is make sure she is okay.

Donate to Theresa's campaign

Suggested minimum gift: $100. You were paying that every week in loan payments.