This is ludicrous. Yes, if you’re determined for some reason to send your child to Harvard, you may have a problem. But if you have serious financial issues, then send him to a junior college for two years and then on to State U. Believe me, five years down the road his employers are not going to care where he got his undergraduate degree. It’s really only important where he goes to graduate school, not undergrad. To finance the undergraduate education he can get grants, scholarships, and loans to pay for it, live in the dorm, and hold one or two part-time jobs.
To finance grad school he will probably have to do a TAship or research assistantship and scramble around for some additional money, but so what. Kids are young and energetic and most of ‘em need to spend less time drinking and partying anyway.
Trust me, if our one-parent family can do it, anybody can do it. People need to stop whining.
Actually, no: If a student is able to gain admission to Harvard, the money is their in scholarships and grants for them to attend, IIRC.