Life can be stingy with do-overs, but luckily this is one of those times when you get a second chance. While you can't turn back the clock and erase your academic mistakes entirely, you can move on and put those mistakes behind you.
If you have a high school diploma (or even a GED or comparable completion certificate) then you can attend college, even if you previously failed a year of high school (and some colleges will admit students who never finished high school at all). However, a full year of F's (or any very low grades) will torpedo your GPA which will, in turn, limit your college options and keep you out of many schools, including some less-selective (but well priced) public colleges.
Yes, there are colleges that accept all (or almost all) candidates regardless of high school GPA, and the majority of two-year colleges (especially public community colleges) will do the same. So you should certainly have choices, regardless of how badly you messed up in high school. But, depending on how long ago you failed that one year (i.e., was it 9th grade? 10th? 11th? ...) you may not want to graduate “on time" but, instead, take the extra year you missed to get your GPA on solid ground.
Without knowing your current GPA (or your college goals and future plans), "The Dean" can't responsibly advise you on whether you should try to stick around high school for another year or not. Similarly, I don't know if high school seems heinous to you so you're sucking it up now and just trying to get through or if, conversely, you're actually enjoying the fact that you're not flunking anymore and are perhaps even a bit wistful that you didn't put more time into your studies in the past.
Bottom Line: You can definitely go to college, even with one full failed year of high school on your record, but you will increase opportunities if you are able to bump up your GPA before you leave your current school.
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