The Biden administration said Wednesday it would forgive $37 million in debt for more than 1,200 former students at the University of Phoenix, a controversial for-profit college that the Education Department alleges misled students for years with false advertising.
A national ad campaign promised prospective students that attending the school would lead them to receive preferential hiring treatment at a number of high-profile companies, including Microsoft and Adobe.
An investigation conducted by the Federal Trade Commission and reviewed by DOE found that the university misrepresented its relationships with those businesses, which included many Fortune 500 companies.
Richard Cordray, chief operating officer for Federal Student Aid, the division of DOE that provides financial aid to students, said on a call with reporters Wednesday the university “brazenly deceived” hundreds of students.