wistv.com - Columbia, South Carolina |Former Allen U. student says school messed up his transcript

By Jackie Faye - bio | email

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - Your college transcript can determine your future, but what if there was a mistake made on your transcript? A Midlands man says that is exactly what happened to him, and he says Allen University is to blame.

"Like I said I came out here and tried to get it worked out, but then once I told them my situation, they just laughed, like literally laughed, says Lawrence Terry. Terry goes on to say, "They thought it was funny and I was like, I don't see the humor in this."

Terry's situation starts in fall of 2002. He enrolled at Allen University to run track, but no track team was put together that year. "So I decided just to sit out and think about what my options were," says Terry.

He decided to go to Midlands Tech to get his core classes out of the way. The transcript he says Allen sent to Tech had no grades for the fall of 2003. Terry says he took off that semester. "I went to Midlands Tech spring of 2004 and summer of 2004, then I applied for different schools and I was denied," says Terry.

Terry says he never knew why he did not get in and says he never will for sure, but late last year when he was talking to a career counselor, he says he found something wrong with those transcripts.

"They told me on my grades I had a couple of F's, and I was like 'well I didn't do that bad in school,' I said 'no ma'am, I failed some classes, I've never been an A or B student, but not that many,'" says Terry.

Terry remembered he still had a transcript from Allen in a sealed envelope. He says he opened it and saw for the fall of '03 there were three F's and three withdrawal absences. Terry says he went to the registrar's office at Allen to try and get everything straightened out. He took a tape recorder with him and says he talked with Registrar Marilyn Young.

Terry: You got to do nothing to get all WA's and F's.
Young: That's right.
Terry: To get an F you got to go to class.
Young: I know, I know.

Besides the bad grades on his transcript, Terry says Allen University benefited from the mistake. "The school got the money but I was never here, so the school got the money for a student that was never there," says Terry.

Terry says he is still paying those student loans back.

Terry also asked Young about their records.

Young: I thought you were talking about this year, December.
Terry: No, not this year, no, no, '03 that fall.
Young: No, I cannot verify that because back then they weren't taking accurate records so I can't see what they sent.

Allen University would not do an interview, but said in a statement, "The university is confident that all policies and procedures were followed with regard to Mr. Terry's request for his academic transcript. However, we will remain prudent in our continued investigation of Mr. Terry's claims and concerns."

Terry has filed a complaint in state court, claiming Allen University was negligent. He is asking for $15 million. The added semester of grades dropped Terry's grade point average from a 1.95 to a 1.36.

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