The Kentucky Attorney General’s Office announced yesterday that for-profit education company Career Education Corporation (CEC) has agreed to reform its recruiting and enrollment practices and forgo collecting more than $2.3 million in debts owed by more than 1,300 Kentucky students.
The announcement is part of a $498 million national settlement with the Illinois-based CEC and state attorneys general that caps a five-year investigation launched after numerous student complaints and a critical report by federal lawmakers.
CEC educational brands have included Briarcliffe College, Brooks Institute, Brown College, Harrington College of Design, International Academy of Design & Technology, Le Cordon Bleu, Missouri College and Sanford-Brown.
Some of the questionable practices utilized by CEC included making misleading statements or failing to disclose information to prospective students on total costs, transferability of credits, program offerings and job placement rates, according to Attorney General Steve Beshear.
CEC agreed to pay the states as part of its settlement, Beshear said. Kentucky will receive nearly $200,000 that will go to the state’s General Fund for lawmakers to appropriate during the 2020 legislative budget session, Beshear said.
Last week, the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office reached a $1.7 settlement with Sullivan University for nearly 700 former Spencerian College students. CEC and Spencerian settlements combined total $4 million in debt relief for more than 2,000 students.
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com or 270-259-6000
