vote of no confidence in Hamilton. The part-time faculty formed an Adjunct Faculty Council, and the students formed a Student Council. Alumni and alumnae decided to form an Independent Alumni/ae Association. The report sparked protests by students and faculty alike, who pressured Hamilton into resigning on August 2. Though initially Hamilton remained on the board after his resignation, he was forced out, along with Gabel. In his resignation letter, Hamilton claimed that criticism of his administration was due to New College being held to an unfairly high standard and said that criticisms of the school were "petty". After WASC imposed sanctions against the college, the school's faculty tried to move toward greater accountability by forming a college-wide Faculty Council, an effort that drew praise from the association. WASC credited the Faculty Council and the school's new academic leadership for making improvements in the academic affairs of the college. Adjunct faculty, students and alumni also formed new organizations seeking change. Financial collapse After Hamilton's resignation, Luis Molina, an attorney who served on the school's board of trustees was inaugurated as the college's interim president. Francisco Leite, a former university administrator from Brazil who Martin Hamilton met while contracting an exchange program with UNAES, became Chief Financial Officer. Molina stated he was working with the school's other board members to earn back the school's accreditation. Molina also promised to reform the school's governance, as students and faculty complained that all real administrative power lay in the hands of Hamilton and his confidants. Molina's interim administration hired an educational consultant to help bring the college into compliance with accreditation standards of WASC, an effort which drew praise from faculty and the association. After WASC's report, the school's enrollment consequently fell to less than 600; finances of course only worsened, unpaid utility bills prompted Pacific Gas and Electric Co. threaten to turn the school's power off, the Department of Education alleged that the school illegally mishandled scholarships and other aid money, and federal loans and grants were withheld due to unfilled paperwork. By the end of 2007, the United States Department of Education (DOE) placed the college on heightened cash monitoring after discovering improprieties in the financial aid office, preventing financial aid funds from being disbursed until after New College's paperwork passed a review. The financial aid staff hired by Molina and Leite were unable to fix the files to conform to DOE standards,