March 16, 2017
In response to media coverage about the most recent Independent Monitor Report, Zenith Education Group released the following statement:
The recent Independent Monitor Report by Clark Kent Erwin of the law firm Squire Patton Boggs and related media coverage represent what we believe is a misleading view of our organization, and paints a picture of our campuses that is far from the truth.
Two years ago, Zenith Education Group acquired distressed schools previously under the ownership of Corinthian Colleges. Since then, we have invested hundreds of millions of dollars and significant time and effort into transforming the schools into nonprofit career colleges that successfully educate students and put them on the path to a meaningful career. This fact is illustrated (but not mentioned by the monitor) at the Woodbridge campus, which has seen an increase in job placement from 47 percent in 2014 prior to the acquisition to 71 percent in 2016.
Since the acquisition, we have strived to provide complete transparency to our students, the independent monitor and the public at large. We also have operated within all of the parameters put into place by the Department of Education as part of the acquisition – a level of scrutiny that far exceeds the oversight of other career schools.
While the recent media coverage focuses on findings that are minimal in number and scope – such as the handful of nearly 1,000 calls monitored found to be “problematic” or proposed changes to verbiage that is subjective in nature – we will continue to focus on our end goal of creating a career college system that is and will continue to yield positive results for the students we serve.