Dive Brief:
- Under an agreement with the Florida Attorney General’s office, Kaplan Higher Education, Kaplan Higher Education Campuses, and Kaplan University have promised to clearly disclose information about accreditation, program costs, financial aid, and employment services they provide.
- Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi had investigated Kaplan’s enrollment and marketing practices, and during the investigation, Kaplan voluntarily waived tuition and fees for more than 2,400 students in Florida at a cost of more than $6 million.
- Kaplan has also agreed to offer retraining to certain students and to set up expedited arbitration for students with claims against the school. Also, Kaplan agreed to reimburse the Attorney General's Office for attorney's fees and costs.
Dive Insight:
Students who are eligible for retraining will be notified over the next 60 days, and they will have until Sept. 5 to sign up for the retraining. Some of the problems Kaplan was investigated for are illuminated by stipulations in the agreement: Kaplan representatives cannot claim that a program is “fully accredited,” can’t say that an interview or recommendation is required unless that requirement is stated in the catalog, can’t use artificial or arbitrary enrollment deadlines, can’t say a course is in “high demand” or has limited availability if it doesn’t, can’t say that federal grants are “free money,” and can’t enroll a student without regular access to an Internet-connected computer in online classes.