GI BILL - For-Profit University Swindle

aka 'Greed Files'

"Are for-profit universities taking advantage of veterans?" PBS NewsHour 7/24/2015

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Since 2009, the G.I. Bill has paid up to $21,000 a year of college tuition for those who served in Iraq or Afghanistan.  Much of that money, though, goes to for-profit schools, which award degrees some employers don’t recognize.  Aaron Glantz of the Center for Investigative Reporting and “Reveal” reports.

JUDY WOODRUFF (NewsHour):  The G.I. Bill represents America’s promise to its military veterans.  Since 2009, it has paid the cost of college tuition for those who served in Iraq or Afghanistan, up to $21,000 a year in taxpayer dollars.

Today, 40 percent of that money is flowing to for-profit schools, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.  But when veterans finish their studies, some employers and graduate programs don’t recognize or value those degrees.

From the Center for Investigative Reporting and "Reveal," Aaron Glantz reports:

AARON GLANTZ, Center for Investigative Reporting:  Three years ago, President Obama said he would stop for-profit schools from taking advantage of service members and veterans.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA:  They are trying to swindle and hoodwink you.  And, today, here at Fort Stewart, we’re putting an end to it.

AARON GLANTZ:  The President was responding to reports that for-profit colleges enjoyed virtually unrestricted access to bases, where they enrolled new students and profited from taxpayer money.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA:  We’re going to up our oversight of improper recruitment practices.  We’re going to strengthen the rules about who can come on post and talk to service members.

AARON GLANTZ:  President Obama signed an executive order that placed restrictions on for-profit schools to weed out deceptive recruitment practices.  Three years after the President’s executive order, no school receives more G.I. Bill money than the University of Phoenix, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The University of Phoenix is a large for-profit college chain with about 200,000 students, a majority of whom take classes online.  We wanted to know whether the University of Phoenix was complying with the spirit and the letter of the rules President Obama put in place, and whether the for-profit college had gained an advantage through its relationship with the military.