Parents may be single, married, divorced, widowed or some stage in between. They may have one or multiple kids – twins, triplets (or more!), adopted children, blended families and/or children with special needs.
Some parents are disabled, dealing with serious medical conditions (and the costs of paying for them), approaching retirement or already retired. Some may still have their own student loans to pay.
Others don’t have enough to pay for college because they haven’t saved enough or had to use their funds to pay for emergencies or care for aging grandparents.
They may have underestimated the cost because they didn’t expect their student to get accepted at a particular school. Or they simply hoped for a scholarship or help from a family member that didn’t happen.
Some may make too much to qualify for aid but not enough to pay for college. Or they may have received “sudden money” (an inheritance or severance package or the sale of property), planned to use some of it for college, but realize they need most of it for retirement.
Sometimes families had a plan that was working just fine, but then something changed, and they didn’t know what to do. They needed a Plan B, but didn’t have one.
We also help kids whose parents are deceased or who want to transfer schools or need to plan for grad school as well as college.
Some kids are non-binary/gender-fluid/transgender who have the added burden of trying to navigate the physical and psychological changes of transitioning, not to mention the costs involved.
Extended family members and friends may want to help without creating negative repercussions for the kids and their parents.