ITT Tech announced today that it is closing all of its campuses across the country just two weeks after the Department of Education banned the school from enrolling new students using federal financial aid and its accreditation was called into question after the troubled school failed to meet several basic standards required for such schools.
Suzanne Martindale, staff attorney for Consumers Union, the policy and mobilization arm of Consumer Reports, issued the following statement in reaction to ITT Tech’s announcement:
“ITT Tech has a long record of making big promises to students, only to leave them deep in debt without delivering the kind of quality education they need to succeed. For years, the accreditor has been asleep at the wheel before finally taking action to protect students. We are pleased that the Department of Education has stepped up its oversight of ITT Tech and that students and taxpayers will no longer subsidize this failing institution. We urge the Department to work closely with current and former students to ensure that they can discharge their outstanding federal loans given the well-documented abuses at ITT Tech.”
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Consumers Union is the public policy and advocacy division of Consumer Reports. Consumers Union works for health reform, food and product safety, financial reform, and other consumer issues in Washington, D.C., the states, and in the marketplace. Consumer Reports is the world’s largest independent product-testing organization. Using its more than 50 labs, auto test center, and survey research center, the nonprofit rates thousands of products and services annually. Founded in 1936, Consumer Reports has over 8 million subscribers to its magazine, website, and other publications.