"but why should the president of a university meet with a student or his family members about whether credits from another university will be accepted at Duke?"
"Both Colin and Reade Seligmann are taking classes this semester at colleges near their homes. However, Duke will not let them transfer more than two courses so they are unable to keep up with their studies while suspended unless they get permission to transfer more. "
Duke would not allow the transfer, and so they had to ask for that permission.
IMHO, Duke sacrificed these kids to try to protect its own imagine. Duke should have put some political pressure on the DA office once it became apparent that the case had no merits, which was actually pretty early on. These kids lives have been torn apart, and Duke should do whatever they can to accommodate them.