Earlier this month, a large for-profit college closed in Maryland, leaving many people without degrees and large amounts of student loan debt.
According to the Huffington Post, on January 9, the American Career Institute (ACI), with campuses in Columbia, Silver Spring and Baltimore, as well as Massachusetts, shut down its campuses, saying schools were struggling financially.
The college had programs in web design, gaming design, computer network administration, and medical and dental assisting.
Michael Liska, who was scheduled to graduate in August from ACI, said that he owes more than $20,000 in student loans. His mother described the situation as “truly horrible.”
Other students had similar sentiments. “It’s like a knife through your heart,” ACI student Mim Pierre told WHDH Boston. “It’s like yesterday you wake up, you have class, you have homework, you have finals. Then the next day you wake up and there’s no more school.”
Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley has opened an investigation into ACI’s closing, according to the Post.
Unfortunately, for ACI students with debts, it is extremely difficult to eliminate student loans through bankruptcy. Because of this, we have urged lawmakers to choose federal laws to allow borrowers the discharge of student loan debt.
Even though it is difficult to eliminate student loan debt through bankruptcy, for most borrowers, a filing can help eliminate other debts like credit cards and medical bills, allowing them to catch up on student loan payments.
Student loan borrowers should not assume that a bankruptcy cannot help them. For people who are struggling to pay their bills, Chapter 13 or Chapter 7 bankruptcies are options. Filing for bankruptcy triggers an automatic stay that puts an end to collection attempts by creditors.
If your financial situation is a problem, contact our Washington DC and Maryland bankruptcy lawyer now for a free consultation.
