TUCSON, Ariz. — Officials with the U.S. Department of Education confirmed Tuesday they have started the process of asking the University of Arizona to pay back millions of dollars in loans from students of an online university that UArizona bought, and which the Department of Education says "cheated" its customers.
The University of Arizona bought Ashford University, a for-profit university, in 2020 and turned it into the University of Arizona Global Campus (UAGC).
At the time, Ashford had dealt with decades of issues, including lawsuits over its recruiting practices and the quality of its education.
Within three years, Ashford's parent company, Zovio, had dissolved and the University of Arizona was on the hook for more than $250 million in budget hits from running the Global Campus.
Also in 2023, the U.S. Department of Education cancelled $72 million in student loan debt for students of Ashford University, saying those students had been "cheated".
On Monday, a department spokesperson said, “We are in the process of initiating the recoupment action, which has not yet gone to UAGC.”
It would be another massive hit for a university that's already $177 million in debt and struggling to find its way out.
Gov. Katie Hobbs is planning to meet with the Arizona Board of Regents again this week to discuss the Tucson-based university's future.
"They'll hear from me what I need to continue to see," Hobbs said Tuesday. "I'm hopeful we can move forward."
Earlier this week, the regents announced that UArizona President Robert Robbins will be given a 10% pay cut, but allowed to keep his job.
A university spokesperson sent a statement saying:
"The University of Arizona is not responsible for the actions of Ashford University. When the Department announced last year that it was approving borrower defense to repayment (BDR) claims of students who attended Ashford University, the University of Arizona made clear that these BDR claims were based on Ashford’s actions prior to UAGC acquiring Ashford. While the Department has not indicated a timeline on recoupment, we remain encouraged that we will achieve an outcome that is best for the students of UAGC and the taxpayers of Arizona."
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