WASHINGTON — More than 1,200 University of Phoenix students are expected to have their student loans discharged, according to the White House.
The Biden-Harris Administration announced Wednesday the approval of almost $37 million in loan repayment discharges for students who enrolled at the university between Sept. 21, 2012, and Dec. 31, 2014.
VERSIÓN EN ESPAÑOL: Condonarán deuda de más de 1,200 estudiantes de la Universidad de Phoenix debido a anuncios engañosos, dijo la Casa Blanca
According to a release from the U.S. Department of Education, the department found a national ad campaign from the University of Phoenix misled prospective students. The ads falsely represented the university's partnerships with thousands of corporations, the release said.
Findings from the department also say the ads said the partnerships would benefit students by, for example, giving them hiring preferences at those companies. Phoenix’s corporate partnerships "provided no such benefits to students," the release said.
“The University of Phoenix brazenly deceived prospective students with false ads to get them to enroll,” said Federal Student Aid Chief Operating Officer Richard Cordray. “Students who trusted the school and wanted to better their lives through education ended up with mounds of debt and useless degrees. Today’s announcement builds on the FTC’s work to provide relief to those affected by Phoenix’s misconduct and delivers on the Biden-Harris Administration’s mission to support student loan borrowers.”
An investigation into the University of Phoenix was resolved with a $191 million resolution in 2019.
Affected borrowers should be notified by early October to determine if their application has been approved. These borrowers should have remaining loan balances zeroed out and credit trade lines deleted. Any payments made to the Department for related Federal student loans will be refunded.
A spokesperson for the University of Phoenix issued the following statement:
“We respectfully, but adamantly disagree with the U.S. Department of Education’s allegations related to the Dec. 2019 University of Phoenix settlement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The claims made by the FTC and the Dept. of Ed were never tested in court. We stand behind our statement from Dec. of 2019 in which we admitted no wrongdoing in the Let’s Get Back to Work campaign, a single campaign that ran from late 2012 to early 2014. We encourage review of our statement and the ads on a University of Phoenix microsite.
“With respect the Borrower Defense to Repayment claims, the University of Phoenix takes student borrower complaints very seriously and has provided significant evidence to the Dept. of Ed refuting inaccurate, baseless, or incomplete claims. While the University is not against relief for borrowers who have valid claims, we intend to vigorously challenge each frivolous allegation and suspicious claim through every available legal avenue.
“We remain focused on our mission which is providing quality, career-relevant higher education to underserved adult learners while supporting our more than one million University alumni.”
Borrowers who may qualify for relief due to this finding should visit StudentAid.gov/borrower-defense online to apply for borrower defense.
>> Download the 12News app for the latest local breaking news straight to your phone.
12News on YouTube
Catch up on the latest news and stories on the 12News YouTube channel. Subscribe today.
