"I'm an old Marine. I'm going to follow the chain of command. I can go until we hit God."
That quote is from Katrina survivor Leon Dupreire, explaining in a Washington Post article how he got Allstate to pay out a storm damage claim they initially denied. I'm tempted to plaster it across the box in which I amass bills and such. Unfortunately, it feels like squeaking loudly and persistently is what's too often required to get financial wheels greased.
I finally went back to New School this week to attempt to sort my financial aid yet again, and to resolve the issue of why my one remaining scholarship had dropped to half its initial amount. The result? A completely different story than I got in July -- it seems my scholarship that vanished shouldn't have after all, and only went away because the number of credits I'm taking was incorrectly calculated. Multiple times. Still no one can explain to me how these two scholarship amounts are determined. However, since this trip resulted in the full amount I officially sought being restored, I officially no longer have to care. This is my last year, the money is showing up on my financial aid balance sheet, and I'm declaring victory.
Learning to be organized and persistent in wrangling my college bills is proving far more educational than any of my actual classes. I want credits for it!
|