Legal news for Georgia government attorney’s. American InterContinental University sued by former employees for fraud.
Georgia government attorney alert- A whistle blower lawsuit against American InterContinental University and Career Education Corporation accused them of fraud.
Atlanta, GA—A for-profit college, American InterContinental University (AIU), owned by Career Education Corporation, are both named in a whistle-blower lawsuit filed by four former AIU employees for defrauding federal grant programs, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SAC) http://www.sacs.org/, and violations of the Higher Education Act. The lawsuit estimated AIU acquired fraudulent grant money in excess of $100 million and a large amount in federal college loans, as reported by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The federal whistle-blower lawsuit was filed by four former AIU employees identified as: Melissa Simms Powell, a academic advisor at AIU’s Dunwoody campus; Angela Hitchens, registrar’s office employee; Joseph Plumley Jr., acting president of Dunwoody campus and vice president for academic affairs; and Glenn Dobson, director of human resources. According to the lawsuit, AIU allegedly enrolled students who were illiterate and students who did not have a high school diploma. AIU also reportedly rewarded their recruiters with bonuses, which directly correlated with the number of students they enrolled. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, which accredited AIU, put the university on probation in 2006 and 2007, for awarding recruiters and enrolling students without a high school diploma or an equivalent. The lawsuit further alleges, AIU removed and placed documents in a locked filing cabinet, which contained any mention of enrollment quotes when the SAC visited AIU’s campus in 2007. In addition, AIU reportedly resumed the same or similar quota system after the SAC probation was lifted. In January 2008, AIU also sent enrollment counselors with the highest enrollment rates from the Dunwoody and Buckhead campuses on an all-expenses-paid trip to Miami, Florida. AIU officials stated, “We believe the case is without merit, and we intend to vigorously defend against it.”
According to Wikipedia http://www.wikipedia.org/ AIU offers Associates, Bachelors and Masters degrees in business administration, criminal justice, education, healthcare management, information technology, marketing, and visual communication.
Legal News Reporter: Nicole Howley-Legal news for Georgia lawyers specializing in government law.