Apollo Group and University of Phoenix Underscore Commitment to Student Protection Policies
August 05 2010 - 10:33AM
Business Wire
University of Phoenix and its parent company, Apollo Group
(NASDAQ: APOL), today acknowledged the industry findings of a
United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) study of
for-profit college student recruitment practices, and reaffirmed
their commitment to leading reform in industry transparency,
standards and practices. Apollo Group also reiterated
previously-announced plans detailing a number of new student
protection initiatives at University of Phoenix.
“Over the past few years, Apollo Group has brought in a new
management team with the goal of creating a world-class student
experience at each of our universities, including University of
Phoenix,” said Apollo Group Co-Chief Executive Officer and Apollo
Global Chairman Greg Cappelli. “While we still have work to do, we
have initiated a rigorous compliance process designed to improve
oversight of our policies and procedures including our recruitment
practices, and we are making significant improvements to the way we
train and evaluate our student counselors.”
University of Phoenix has already implemented a number of robust
student protections, including a proprietary, free Student
Orientation Program, and effective new tools to help students make
informed borrowing decisions. In addition, as previously announced,
beginning November 1 of this year the University plans to roll out
a new student counselor compensation framework, which has been in
development and testing for more than a year.
“We recognize and share many of the concerns expressed by the
U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions led
by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA),” said Apollo Group Co-Chief Executive
Officer Chas Edelstein. “However, in his closing remarks, Sen.
Harkin publicized an internal training slide from the University of
Phoenix that he may not have realized was from more than seven
years ago. Our research indicates this outdated document had
limited use at the University in 2003, and has not been used for
many years since. Importantly, the slide does not reflect the
values of the current leadership team who do not condone the
attitude represented by this particular slide. ”
The GAO study sampled recruiting practices at a number of
for-profit colleges, including University of Phoenix. Apollo Group
takes the GAO’s findings very seriously and has initiated an
immediate internal investigation. Apollo has strict policies to
protect students during the enrollment process and throughout their
tenure with the University, and when any violation of policy is
discovered, it takes immediate and decisive disciplinary action up
to, and including, termination of the employees involved.
Apollo Group is committed to serving the best interest of its
students and has implemented or is preparing to implement several
initiatives focused on student protection, including:
- A comprehensive evaluation of
enrollment practices, policies and procedures, including a systemic
review of the University’s compensation model for employees who
enroll and advise students;
- A firm decision to change the
way counselors are evaluated and compensated, including a
commitment to completely eliminate admission targets as a component
of compensation;
- New ethics and compliance
measures and policies including implementation of a digital
call monitoring system to monitor tens of thousands of phone calls
every day, between prospective students and counselors, for any
evidence of false or misleading information;
- A proprietary, free three-week
program called University Orientation designed to help students
with little or no college experience understand what it takes to
succeed in the challenging academic environment at University of
Phoenix, before taking on the burden of college debt;
- A user-friendly financial aid
calculator, designed to help students better understand the direct
and indirect costs of their education and better manage debt
levels, which is already resulting in a substantial reduction in
the number of students who are borrowing at the maximum level;
and
- A dramatically restructured
approach to marketing, including a reduction in the use of third
parties in order to gain control and responsibility over student
messaging and to ensure accurate information is being provided to
students.
“We are committed to being leaders not only in the education of
our students, but also in compliance with all applicable standards
and regulations,” added Edelstein. “We will continue our work to
enhance compliance, training, and monitoring procedures in the
coming months, to ensure that students receive appropriate
information to help them make informed choices about their higher
education options.”
About University of Phoenix
University of Phoenix is constantly innovating to help students
balance education and life in a rapidly changing world. Through
flexible schedules, challenging courses and interactive learning,
students achieve personal and career aspirations without putting
their lives on hold. During the quarter ended May 31, 2010, 476,500
students were enrolled at University of Phoenix, the largest
private university in North America. University of Phoenix serves a
diverse student population, offering associate’s, bachelor’s,
master’s, and doctoral degree programs from campuses and learning
centers across the U.S. as well as online throughout the world.
About Apollo Group, Inc.
Apollo Group, Inc. is one of the world's
largest private education providers and has been in the education
business for more than 35 years. The Company offers innovative and
distinctive educational programs and services both online and
on-campus at the high school, undergraduate, masters and doctoral
levels through its subsidiaries: University of Phoenix, Apollo
Global, Institute for Professional Development, College for
Financial Planning and Meritus University. The Company's programs
and services are provided in 40 states and the District of
Columbia; Puerto Rico; Canada; Latin America; and Europe, as well
as online throughout the world (data as of May 31, 2010). For more
information about Apollo Group, Inc. and its subsidiaries, call
(800) 990-APOL or visit the Company's website at
www.apollogrp.edu.
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