Students from The Sawyer School breathed a sigh of relief, after learning the state’s Office of Higher Education was stepping in to help them out.
The announcement was made weeks after The Sawyer School shut down, leaving many of those students in debt and without enough job training.
“Where do we go from here?”
Rosalie Santana told NBC Connecticut she was blind-sighted when she found out the trade school she was attending to become a medical assistant, was closing.
“I really wanted that degree. I had a lot of plans. That was my goal.”
Santana was months shy of graduating when she was told The Sawyer School was shut down and given no other information. This is after she took out a $20,000 loan to go there.
“I have debt. I have two kids. I have a lot of my plate that I’m losing because of this situation.”
Other students felt the same way.
Amanda Wisnieski graduated from the medical assistant program recently, but hasn’t been able to find a job because she can’t get her records from the school.
“I’m a mess right now, like my future went out the window,” said Wisnieski.
Students from The Sawyer School demanded answers from the facility since the school was closed late December.
On Friday, Connecticut’s Office of Higher Education announced it was planning to recover all student records from the school’s three branches in Connecticut. That would make it easier for students like Santana to transfer to other trade schools and continue their education.
NBC Connecticut reached out to Paul Kelly, President of The Sawyer School, to see if he could shed light on the situation. We have yet to hear back.
Santana said until students get answers, the issue is far from over.
“Whoever’s responsible for this, they need to tell us the truth.”
The state’s Office of Higher Education hopes to recover most of the students’ records by Monday.
