Kathryn, a Washington State University student, posted this video to her TikTok account Lantie exposing an email from her university's bursar office. The email informs her that there is an outstanding balance on her account, and that "Nonpayment of this balance may result in late payment fees as well as registration and/or diploma holds." Terrified by this surprising information, Kathryn apprehensively clicks on the outstanding balance. It was one cent.

"Do you not think you could just let this one go?" She asks jokingly. "I have a penny just laying around. I'll walk in person and give it to them." While this email is likely an automated response to an outstanding balance, its existence in and of itself is an indictment of the priority universities place on their finances over the education and well-being of their students; especially considering its threatening tone, and the minimal outstanding balance. "The ridiculousness of capitalism," one person comments. "Make sure you ask them to mail you a receipt," another person says. Schools really are bleeding their students down to the last cent.