Mom Begs on Highway Ramp to Pay Son's Tuition
A woman whose son has been accepted to his dream school doesn’t have the money to send him there. So she’s been spending every day on a highway off-ramp near her Washington home, begging for change.
For a woman who’s unemployed, the pay isn’t bad. She reports as much as $45 an hour!
The boy has a $45,000 scholarship to Idyllwild Arts Academy in California, but ABC says the single mom doesn’t have the cash to make up the difference in the $47,500 boarding student tuition. Not the way I’d suggest going about it, but you’ve got to hand it to Shelle Curley for encouraging her son to follow his dream.
David “DJ” Strong is slated for a prestigious high school, but this is a challenge more parents are facing in regards to college tuition. And a recent survey by Sallie Mae/Gallup showed more parents are putting their foot down on expensive colleges.
The more affluent families – no surprise – are OK with the higher price, with families who earn $100,000 or more shelling out an average of $23,817 a year versus families who fall into a low income bracket (under $35,000 a year in earnings) who pay just $16,955 on average.
Low income families were likewise more liable to direct their kids to a community college rather than a four-year private school. That might not sound like a big deal – after all, an education’s an education. But the highest fees are generally charged by doctorate-granting universities – which means families who have to opt out on cost could very well be cutting short their kids’ choices down the road.
The good news for parents out of all of this? Jobs that require a bachelor’s degree don’t always pay more than those that require an associate’s degree.
Good new for Curley? She’s diversified. David “DJ” now has a website where people can donate – so she doesn’t have to stand in the rain (check out the picture on the ABC story, she looks like miserable). DJSTuition.com tells the family’s story and lets people send money via PayPal. She’ll even keep you updated on his plight via Twitter.
Image: DJ’s Tuition (DJ – the kid who’s slated for dance school, is the one pictured above)
Comments….wow..this is everywhere..I’ve only been out 10 times after extensive fundraising. the school was 53,000 total and received a 45,000 scholarship…we have 4500 to go
What a joke! This woman quit her job because she didn’t like, maybe she should have been thinking about her son then. The UNEMPLOYED woman is out begging ppl while they are on their way to their JOB. I don’t feel bad for either one of them. You get what you WORK for!
[1] If you love your son SO much, go out and get 2-3 jobs to help him!
[2] He looks like a pretty able-bodied young man, its about time he took some ownership for his education.
[3] He is 17 years old – did you not think he was going to go to college? Even saving ONLY $50 a month since he was born would have netted over $10,000 for his education.
As my mother says, we are raising a generation of spoiled brats and wimps!
And, for the record, I paid for my college education by working full time and going to school at night.
The same for graduate school!
The people who are making these negative comments are sooooo insensitive!… How do I make a donation?