Last week, at a critical point in the Paris negotiations on global climate change, Secretary of State John Kerry announced that the United States would commit $800 million annually to help developing nations adapt to a warming climate and move to cleaner energy.  $800 million doubled the prior U.S. pledge, and the announcement may have
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After settling multiple law enforcement investigations this month on absurdly favorable terms, troubled for-profit college company Education Management Corp. (EDMC) may be on the verge of getting a sweetheart deal from Congress — a deal that could compound the harms that the company already has caused to students and taxpayers. A provision in the highway bill
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On Tuesday, a federal jury in Miami convicted Alejandro Amor, the owner of shut-down FastTrain College, of theft and conspiracy. Amor gained notoriety when it was disclosed that FastTrain, a for-profit college, used strippers to recruit students, but the offense for which he now faces a long prison sentence was enrolling, and cashing federal financial aid checks for, some
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A Colorado state trial court has rejected nearly every aspect of a motion by a former for-profit college company to dismiss a fraud lawsuit brought by the Colorado attorney general.  In a November 17 opinion, Judge Ross B.H. Buchanan denied most of the arguments put forth by the Center for Excellence in Higher Education, which operates the
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At a press conference this morning, the Justice Department, the Department of Education, and a group of state attorneys general announced what Attorney General Loretta Lynch called a “landmark settlement” of fraud charges against for-profit college company Education Management Corporation (EDMC).  The company will pay $95.5 million — the largest False Claims Act settlement ever
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Every week there are amazing videos by and about America’s predatory for-profit colleges, which receive billions annually in taxpayer money, spend nearly a quarter of that money on advertising, deceive many students into enrolling, charge sky-high prices, have enormous dropout rates, leave even many graduates buried in debt, and use high-priced D.C. lobbyists to keep the
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As approximately 900 people have kindly informed me in the past 36 hours, the CBS drama “The Good Wife” on Sunday highlighted the struggles of students seeking legal redress for abuses they suffered at the hands of high-priced, low quality for-profit colleges. I appreciated the tip, and I’m impressed to see how well “The Good Wife” brought to
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Senator John McCain (R-AZ), in a speech on the Senate floor yesterday afternoon, charged that fellow Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) has “orchestrated” a “shameful … vendetta against for-profit universities.” McCain upped the ante by asserting that Durbin has a “well-known record of not supporting the men and women who are serving in the military.” Alleging a larger conspiracy,
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