Hiya, first time posting here!

Asking for help on figuring out the best way to pay off school to get the best tax and credit income for myself, and my parents.

I'm graduating this August with my B.A. I'm independent when it comes to my taxes. I work a part-time W2 job and operate my own business (private contractor/freelancer). I need to pay two separate Universities in order to technically graduate and get my BA. I've primarily paid my way through school, but my parents are surprising me by offering to pay everything off (meeting my payments halfway)!

• I owe School A: $13,000.
• I owe School B: $2,000.
• I have around $21,000 in FedLoan from FAFSA.

My concern is what is the best way for my own taxes, and my parents (who are both semi-retired getting pensions and working odd W2 jobs) taxes as well. I know that education credits are new with the American Opportunity Credit versus the standard education credit from the past few years. The Goal? How can I go about this in the best way for my own, and my parents' taxes and credits.

We've concluded three avenues?

• I pay everything off on my own, then my parents gift me the money by checks/wire transfer.
• My parents pay everything off on their own, I don't thrown down anything.
• I pay a partial amount. My parents cover the rest. Then they gift me what I had paid.

Concerns/Reasons

We wanted to max out on this American Opportunity Credit, while boosting both our credit scores (namely mine since I'm 23 and started a Credit Card at 18, score around 780). However, we're concerned that something might be flagged or damaged by receiving a lump sum? We're not entirely sure how to go about this, any help or suggestions would be helpful!