Is anyone else thinking this is a privileged kid who needs to learn a lesson - and hopefully not that mommy can bail him out of rule breaking? I don’t want to sound harsh, but perhaps a private tutor is an option? Of course, it is possible that the college admitted OP’s kid early in part because they knew he’d be full pay - which might mean that the school would appreciate knowing what has happened, and be more willing to work with the family to not rescind his acceptance if a plan is developed for graduation, and no more troubling incidents occur.
We have family friends who had one son (a friend of my son in preschool) who attended a private school, and he was caught with alcohol at a school dance (strike one), and later was caught selling weed out of his backpack at school before class one morning. Two weeks before his 18th birthday. Instead of getting kicked out of school entirely, his parents arranged him to get a private tutor who got the lessons from his teachers, who were told that the student had developed “anxiety” issues and would be unable to attend classes for the rest of the final semester. I think the fact that the kid was 5th gen at this private school, and had 4 younger siblings, two in that school already, helped spark the leniency. But to those of us who know what happened, it appears at least to have been a case of money talks. He graduated with his class, but was not allowed to enjoy any other school activities.
I run into his mom from time to time, and at the time this was going on, she confided that she was relieved that he “dodged a bullet”. He is a bright kid who ended up at a very good school, and last I heard was that he is now in law school, with a fiancé that his mom is thrilled with. His mom, and the rest of the family, are wonderful people - she has often sent her younger two to volunteer with me. I will never hold it against anyone who does what they have to in order to help their kids out.