TRLA Offers Free Legal Aid to Texas Students Affected by Closure of Education Corporation of America

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dec. 13, 2018

Contact:
Nancy Nusser, Press Officer, Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, (512) 374-2765 or (410) 934-9588; nnusser@trla.org

Texas RioGrande Legal Aid (TRLA) will provide free legal services to income-eligible students who need help because of the closure of the for-profit Education Corporation of America (ECA). ECA – which owns Brightwood College and Virginia College – announced that those schools will close in December 2018 because of the parent company’s financial problems. The announcement, which will affect Brightwood and Virginia college campuses in at least 13 Texas cities, will saddle students with the financial repercussions of the sudden closure of schools where they had planned to earn degrees.

“We want students to know that we are here if they need help navigating the legal remedies,” said TRLA attorney Julie Balovich. “They may be eligible for a discharge of their student loans and refunds.”
TRLA provides free civil legal services to income-eligible Texans, including students, in 68 Texas counties.

Students also may be able to transfer their credits to other schools.

The Texas cities where Brightwood College and Virginia College campuses operate include Austin, Brownsville, Corpus Christi, Dallas, El Paso, Fort Worth, Friendswood, Houston, Laredo, Lubbock, McAllen, and San Antonio.

For more information, students should call (210) 212 3798. Please mention Brightwood College or Virginia College when you call or if you leave a message.

Established in 1970, Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, Inc. (TRLA) is a nonprofit organization that provides free legal services to about 23,000 low-income Texans in 68 counties. TRLA’s mission is to promote the dignity, self-sufficiency, safety and access to justice for low-income Texans by providing high-quality legal assistance and related educational services.