Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos has appointed Julian Schmoke, to head the agency’s Student Aid Enforcement Unit, the unit tasked with investigating fraud at for-profit colleges. Mr. Schmoke previously served as a dean at DeVry University, a for-profit school that was sanctioned $100 million by the U.S. government for fraudulent practices. Take action: add your name to the NWC letter calling for the appointment to be withdrawn!
Placing a top official from the disgraced DeVry University into a position charged with protecting whistleblowers, students and veterans is outrageous and threatens every student and veteran attending a for-profit college and every whistleblower who has had the courage to report the fraudulent practices at these schools.
The Whistleblower Action Network has issued an alert to its members to Call for appointment of Julian Schmoke, as the Head of the Student Aid Enforcement Unit, to be withdrawn.
Defend Students! Corruption at for-profit colleges leaves students with no degrees and stifling debt. Enrollment in for-profit colleges makes up only 13% of all students, yet those students make up 48% of student loan defaults.
Defend Veterans! Veterans are disproportionately harmed by for-profit universities, as eight out of the ten schools they choose to use their GI Bill benefits are for-profit universities. As overall enrollment in for-profit colleges has declined, the eight colleges with the most G.I. Bill funding increased their share of veterans by 61% (Career Education Corporation) to 657% (UTI) between 2010 and 2013. Seven of these eight schools were under investigation for deceptive practices during this time.
Protect Taxpayers! Up to 86% of revenue collected by the 15 most popular for-profit education companies comes from federal aid dollars.
Protect Whistleblowers! Whistleblowers at for-profit college have exposed billions of dollars in fraud and taxpayers have collected millions of dollars from sanctions against for-profit colleges. Now all of this is at risk.
Act Now! Send a message to President Trump, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and your Members of Congress to withdraw the appointment of Julian Schmoke as the head of the Student Aid Enforcement Unit.
Learn more about this issue:
- DeVos Pick Puts at Risk Veterans and Whistleblowers at For-Profit Colleges
- How For-Profit Colleges Target Military Veterans (and Your Tax Dollars)
- For-Profit College Company to Pay $95.5 Million to Settle Claims of Illegal Recruiting, Consumer Fraud and Other Violations
- $78.5M Settles U. of Phoenix Case
- SEC Settles Fraud Charges Against Defunct For-Profit College Company ITT
- For-Profit College FCA Suit Ends in $20M-Plus Judgment
- For-profit education is a $35 billion cesspool of fraud—and the US government has let it fester
