In remarks this week, U.S. Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona promised to shut down Grand Canyon University (GCU) in Arizona, the largest Christian university in the nation.
According to Fox News, Cardona made the remarks during a House Appropriations Committee hearing this month. In the hearing, Connecticut Democrat Rep. Rosa DeLauro reportedly asked Cardona how the Biden administration is working to shut down GCU, which she described as a “predatory for-profit school.”
"Last year, your Department took action against Grand Canyon University, a predatory for-profit college, over the school’s failure to accurately disclose its cost to students, driving up the true cost for those students requiring for them to pay for continuation courses before they would graduate – scam courses added about $10,000 or more to the cost of education to these kids," DeLauro said at the hearing.
"Going after predatory schools preying on first generation students. They have flashy marketing materials, but the product is not worth the paper it is printed on. Increased enforcement budget to go after these folks and crack down. Levied largest fine in history against a school that lied about costs and terminated a school from Title IV. We are cracking down not only to shut them down, but to send a message not to prey on students," Cardona reportedly responded.
Late last year, Townhall covered how the federal Department of Education fined GCU tens of millions of dollars for allegedly deceiving its students about the cost of some of its programs (via Ed.gov):
An FSA investigation found GCU lied to more than 7,500 former and current students about the cost of its doctoral programs over several years. GCU falsely advertised a lower cost than what 98% of students ended up paying to complete certain doctoral programs.
“GCU lied about the cost of its doctoral programs to attract students to enroll,” said FSA Chief Operating Officer Richard Cordray. “FSA takes its oversight responsibilities seriously. GCU’s lies harmed students, broke their trust, and led to unexpectedly high levels of student debt. Today, we are holding GCU accountable for its actions, protecting students and taxpayers, and upholding the integrity of the federal student aid programs.”
At the time, the university said it “categorically denies every accusation” and that it will “take all measures necessary to defend itself from these false accusations.”
In addition, it claimed that its accreditor, the Higher Learning Commission, stated that its marketing materials are “clear and transparent.”
“The information and resources provided are robust and thorough, providing prospective students a clear picture of their academic and financial path toward a degree at GCU,” HLC reportedly said.
Richard Cordray, the chief operations officer for Federal Student Aid, said “GCU’s lies harmed students, broke their trust and led to unexpectedly high levels of student debt.”
“Today, we are holding GCU accountable for its actions, protecting students and taxpayers, and upholding the integrity of the federal student aid programs,” he added.
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