U.S. Department of Education Audit
In May 2008, the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Inspector General (OIG) audit services division commenced a compliance audit of Ashford University covering the period March 10, 2005, through June 30, 2009. The OIG audit reached the following conclusions:
| Audit focus | Audit result |
|---|---|
| Compensation policies and practices relating to enrollment advisers | Rewarded recruiters based on their success in securing enrollments |
| Calculation, timeliness, and disbursement accuracy of Title IV program funds | Improperly retained at least $1.1 million during the 2006-7 period |
| Student authorizations to retain credit balances | Kept credit balances without the proper authorization |
| Maintenance of supporting documentation for a student's leave of absence | Took too long to return money awarded to students who withdrew |
The stock of Ashford's parent company, Bridgepoint Education, fell the most in almost five months when the misuse of federal student aid was first publicly disclosed in 2009. When the official results were released in 2011, Senator Tom Harkin said this audit "reveals the same troubling pattern of for-profit colleges' taking advantage of students and taxpayers." The Department of Education has not yet responded to the findings.
The audit was the subject of a U.S. Senate committee hearing on March 10, 2011.
Read more about this topic: Ashford University
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