#BlameGame #HighSchoolTranscripts #CollegeTroubles
Hey there! It sounds like you’ve been dealing with a tough situation regarding your high school transcripts and the aftermath of having to sue your former high school. It’s completely understandable that you’re feeling frustrated and confused about the fallout from your lawsuit. Let’s break it down and look at some advice that might help you navigate this tricky situation without feeling like the bad guy.
🔍 What really happened with your transcripts
Back in my early 20s, I messed up college and ended up failing out. When I decided to go to a trade school instead, I ran into a major roadblock – both colleges and trade schools require high school transcripts, and mine were encrypted by ransomware. I reached out to my former high school for help, only to be told they would do absolutely nothing about the situation. This forced me to take the difficult step of initiating a lawsuit against my former high school, which I graduated from in 2017.
🏫 The fallout from the lawsuit
As a result of the lawsuit, your former high school had to dip into their insurance to cover expenses. This led to a decrease in funds for the school, ultimately resulting in cutbacks and layoffs. Unfortunately, your former friend was one of the individuals who lost their job and is placing the blame squarely on your shoulders.
💬 How to handle the situation
First and foremost, it’s important to recognize that the fallout from the lawsuit was not your fault. Your former high school made the decision to ignore the issue with your transcripts and ultimately had to face the consequences of their actions. Here are a few tips to help you navigate this tricky situation and deal with your former friend’s blame:
1. Communication is key: It might be worthwhile to have an open and honest conversation with your former friend. Explain your side of the story and express your regret for the impact the lawsuit had on their employment. It’s important to clear the air and ensure there are no lingering misunderstandings.
2. Seek support: It’s natural to feel alone and overwhelmed in situations like these. Reach out to other friends, family members, or a professional counselor for support and advice. Having a strong support system can make all the difference in navigating tough times.
3. Let go of guilt: It’s easy to get caught up in guilt and self-blame when others point fingers at you. Remember that you made the best decision you could with the information and resources available to you. You have no control over how others choose to react to the situation.
🔑 Key takeaway
Ultimately, you are not the one to blame for the fallout from your lawsuit against your former high school. It’s understandable that your former friend is hurting and looking for someone to hold responsible, but it’s crucial to remember that their reactions are not within your control. Take care of yourself and focus on moving forward, knowing that you made the best choice for your own well-being.
In conclusion, it’s completely understandable that you’re feeling conflicted and upset about being blamed for a situation that was out of your hands. Remember to communicate openly, seek support, and let go of unnecessary guilt as you navigate this challenging time. You deserve understanding and compassion as you work through the aftermath of your lawsuit. Wishing you all the best as you move forward from this difficult situation.
NTA , the high school should be able to go back into their archives
NTA – It is 100% the schools fault, and you are within your right. You also didn’t know your friend would be laid off if you did this.
It’s like someone crashed their car into yours and now you’re being blamed for them being in the hospital by someone who works for them. Technically, if you weren’t there, it would not have happened, but that does not mean it is your fault.
NTA – this is fucked up though in general i’m sorry you’re going through this
Wow this is crazy. We’re not talking about something minor here the school is potentially tarnishing your future here you have every right to sue them. It sucks your friend got layed off but that’s not your fault this is something that has to be done. If she doesn’t see that she clearly a bad selfish friend theres always other jobs out there. NTA
Edit to add NTA
NTA
You shouldn’t have to sue to gain access to your transcripts/diploma. That’s on the school.
NTA. The school shouldn’t have had transcripts encrypted to start with because you never know when an alumni will need it. The school brought this upon themselves by not fixing the problem and forcing you to sue them.
NTA – Your High School was responsible for safeguarding critical documents and it failed. Laying off staff is a terrible consequence, but that’s on the school’s mismanagement, not you taking necessary action to secure your future. Everyone affected, including your friend, should be looking at the school’s negligence, not shooting the messenger
NTA – You took necessary steps to rectify a situation that was not at all your fault. It’s unfortunate that people are losing jobs over this, but that’s a direct result of the school’s failure to handle their data responsibly. Instead of expecting accountability, your friend is making you the scapegoat. Focus on your future and don’t let misplaced blame derail you.
People need their records, the school should’ve planned for this. If you didn’t sue for the transcript, someone else probably would have eventually anyway. NTA.
NTA – It is the school’s responsibility to maintain both the files and the security of those documents. They are liable for any issues caused and if their negligence led to such a lack of funding that they had to lay people off, it seems very likely they would have been laid off sooner or later anyway as mandatory school upgrades/updates come through.
TL;DR Their lack of planning is not your problem.
NTA
How did they not have backups? A ransomware attack can and will mess up your IT for a while. But if you have a good disaster recovery plan in place then you should be able to get back up and running with a small amount of loss in a reasonable timeframe.
NTA – You’re pursuing your own educational and career goals, and you’re entitled to the records that enable that journey. The school’s failure in safeguarding crucial student data — which is a basic administrational duty — has led to this unfortunate chain of events. Sympathy for those laid off is natural, but the school management’s oversight (or lack thereof) and unpreparedness for such incidents is the true root cause here, not the actions you took to reclaim your own personal academic history. Your friend’s situation is regrettable, but misdirecting frustration towards you won’t solve the systemic issues that led to her job loss.
NTA. Your education and future opportunities hinge on access to those transcripts, which the school is obligated to secure and provide. It’s unfortunate that financial consequences included layoffs, but you pursuing legal action was a necessity, not a whim. Perhaps this will serve as a wake-up call for educational institutions to prioritize data security and have better contingency plans. Your friend’s frustrations are understandable, but they are misdirected. The school’s administrative shortcomings and lack of foresight are the real culprits here
Nta-
School f’d up & their attitude regarding it was ridiculous as well.
School 100% at fault &had no remorse or concern about how it affected former students.
NTA, if this happened to you there’s no telling how many former and future students will be damaged by it as well. Layoffs always suck, but a lawsuit is a contingency the school should have planned for.
What kind of bizarre world do we live in where schools lose funding because they have to pay legal fees. What the actual fuck.
NTA and I hope you win but good god what is wrong with your country.
NTA
If it hadn’t been you, it would have some stranger suing them.
However, it’s also kind of crappy that she can’t see you both as victims in this.
NTA.
Isn’t this a version of a post from a while ago?
NTA: this is like blaming victims of police brutality/negligence for suing bc it takes away from the city’s resources.
The school had a duty to you (and others I’m assuming) that they were failing to fulfill. It’s wholly on them for not doing more to protect themselves and then rectify things.
NTA
They locked thousands of people out of their transcripts through negligence and their answer was fuck you, you no longer have a transcript.
This lawsuit was as inevitable as the tide if it wasn’t you it would be someone else.
It’s 100% the districts fault.
NTA, their mismanagement is on them. I don’t blame her for being upset though.
If you are in the USA the onus is on your state/local government for not properly funding their school system with decent IT infrastructure. When a school district lets people go it’s a **choice** to underfund their students future. NTA.
NTA. The school sounds like it deserves all the blame for this one. What happened to you could’ve happened to anyone, and needed to be dealt with by the school. If I were a parent whose kid got screwed over like this, I’d be furious.
NTA. Maintaining that data is literally their JOB. And they failed at it. How is that your fault?
While this is unrelated to the judgement, have you tried reaching out to your old university asking if they have a copy of your transcript that you submitted to get in?
Schools fault. Lose the friend
NTA and you’re not responsible for your friend’s bad luck.
Oh no – you definitely should have let the school screw you over for your entire earning potential. /s
NTA
NTA – This is not your fault at all. The school should have had copies saved offline to keep them secure.
NTA
But also it might be worth contacting the college you previously attended to see if they have a copy of your transcript from when you applied to them.
It is not your fault that the school is underfunded. Its not your fault that they got hacked. Its not your fault their insurance was crappy. Its not your fault that their response to your request was “nahh”.
NTA would’ve been cheaper for the school to do the right thing without being sued. Then maybe your friend would still have her job. They chose not to. You had nothing to do with that choice.
NTA.
If this situation didn’t happen to you, it would have happened to another student, likely one of the graduating students who would be needing their own transcripts. That ransomware could have spread through the system and caused more problems.
I’m sure your former friend will be able to find another job at a different school.
How’d you get into college the first time without transcripts?
NTA. It’s more the school’s fault than yours. You’re just an easier target than the school/district’s admin to take her anger out on. You’re more accessible than they are. Her anger hurts you more than they ever would be, satisfying her need for someone to be “punished” for her unfair situation. It sucks that she can’t see that it was their incompetence that has negatively affected you both, instead of implying you should have dealt with the consequences on your own instead of holding them accountable. Blaming you for this would be like blaming her for her school’s actions in the first place. It doesn’t make sense and she should know that. Stress and fear make people do and think dumb things.
Hopefully soon she’ll see that she unfairly blamed you and apologize. In the meantime, I would avoid her and carry on with your plans. It’s not your fault.
Clear NTA
Obviously NTA
Your friend is a loser lol if it happened to me I’d congratulate the homie for getting one over the big guys.
You might be able to contact the college you originally went to to obtain a copy of your high school transcripts. Since you had to have them to go there in the first place.
INFO: I think you need to elaborate on the ransomware part. Do you mean that the school was hit? And everybody lost their transcripts?
Wouldn’t this be better as a class action lawsuit?
Sorry, the school essentially said “we don’t care that your entire life is screwed up because of our mistake. Instead of us fixing it, we would rather you just spend the entire time suffering.” You basically couldn’t move on and do anything until you had the transcripts. What else were you supposed to do? If it wasn’t you, it would’ve been someone else forced to make this choice. I’m sorry they’re such sore losers, but it doesn’t change the fact that it was their problem to fix.
NTA.
This is ultimately a failure on the school. and the school IT administrator. Not you.
NTA. I understand her frustration, but it’s directed at the wrong person.
Also, wow. Your transcripts are encrypted?! wtf?????
NTA
The school had a legal right to comply with your request, they didn’t, they found out.
Period end of story.