Dive Brief:
- ECMC Group has announced it will acquire 56 Everest and WyoTech campuses from for-profit operator Corinthian Colleges Inc., turning them into nonprofits.
- According to ECMC, Corinthian would have had to close the schools, which enroll 39,000 students, if ECMC didn’t take them over. Corinthian is running the schools on a temporary operating agreement established this summer with the U.S. Department of Education after the department froze the company’s federal funding.
- The sale is contingent on approval from state and federal authorities, including the education department.
Dive Insight:
ECMC is the nonprofit owner of Education Credit Management Corp., one of the largest loan guarantee agencies in the country. The deal is expected to close in January, creating the largest nonprofit career college system in the U.S., and ECMC is planning several changes to the former Corinthian campuses, including a 20% tuition reduction for most Everest programs. ECMC also pledged that the campuses will achieve strong completion and job placement rates, with a monitor employed to oversee regulatory compliance.