Potential Students Drawn To For-Profit Colleges By Misleading 'Obama Mom' Grant Ads

There's no such thing as an "Obama Mom" grant for single mothers who wish to return to school -- but some advertisements for for-profit colleges are saying otherwise.

A report by ProPublica found that lead generation business such as Experian PLC operate the ads -- perhaps the most ubiquitous of which features two women walking under the headline "Obama Asks Moms To Return To School" (pictured below) -- on websites like LowerMyBills.com and ClassesUSA.com. The ads direct users to lead generators, from which for-profit colleges can buy information about potential students.

When members of ProPublica's Reporting Network clicked on them and subsequently gave over their information, they were inundated with calls and e-mails from recruiters at the University of Phoenix, Kaplan University and Capella University, among other for-profit institutions. And when Reporting Network members asked the recruiters about Obama Mom scholarships and grants, answers were vague:

While no recruiter claimed the grants actually existed, they generally did not dispute that they did. More often, said [Reporting Network member Hana] Shepherd, "I was told that a financial aid person could assist me later when I asked about the Obama grants."

Former Education Department Deputy Undersecretary Robert Shireman denounced the ads to ProPublica, but said that the department doesn't have the power to stop them.

On Friday, the Education Department proposed new, strict regulations for for-profit colleges that would end federal funding to schools who could not prove that their students went on to gainful employment or were able to repay their loans. An April report from the College Board revealed that more than 50 percent of for-profit students graduate with substantial debt -- twice the rate of students from private non-profits.

For-profit schools are known for targeting vulnerable student bases. They came under fire earlier this year after BusinessWeek published a report detailing how the colleges were recruiting students from homeless shelters.

***THE ADVERTISEMENT:***

Comments

[Russell Duren]

10:36 AM on 07/27/2010

As an enrollment counselor at a for-profit (gasp!), I despise the "Obama money" hype. When I have a prospective student who drops the O-bomb, I take them to the White House blog or Dept of Ed page that details the recent Title IV overhaul. "Yes, President Obama has done a lot to help you pay for school," I tell the student, "but it's more complex than just throwing a free money at you." I'm all for responsible tuition planning.
The for-profit model, when ethically delivered in an environment of academic and financial accountability, serves an important social and economic purpose by offering postsecondary education to those who don't have the luxury of dropping everything to be a traditional student.

[Russell Duren]

02:18 PM on 07/27/2010

Apologies and a correction: it should have been "throwing free money", sans the a. Damn cutting and pasting sentence clauses from one part of the comment to another =P

[clearthinker2008]

07:35 AM on 08/07/2010

"The for-profit model, when ethically delivered.." I couldn't keep reading after that I was cracking up!

[TeaLady005]

10:17 AM on 07/27/2010

All you college students listen up!

The mountain of new Obama taxes starting in 2011 will also impact you!

The tax deduction for your tuition is abolished.

The tax deduction for the interest you pay on your student loan is abolished.

If you have a child in day care while you are working or going to school,,the tax deduction for child care services is abolished.

For you teachers,,tax deductions for classroom supplies you pay out of your own pocket is abolished.

If you do not have health insurance the new Obamacare law will hit you first with a penalty and then take a percentage of your income.

The lowest tax rate rises from 10% to 15%.

What happened to the pledge of no new taxes on those making less than $250k a year?

ttp://www.investors.com/NewsAndAnalysis/Article/541131/201007211841/The-Tax-Tsunami-On-The-Horizon.aspx

[PlayTOE]

05:59 AM on 07/27/2010

False, misleading or deceptive advertising ... why is it legal?

[Yam716]

03:55 PM on 07/27/2010

BC it's for profit and taxable...and because most of our politicians are for profit ;)

[toxicbrainpoison]

12:17 AM on 07/27/2010

And if she were an unabashed racist I am sure the school would have reacted the same way.

[realitytrumpsbull]

12:15 AM on 07/27/2010

College students are 'big' on social trends, what if the next big social trend at college, was dropping out of college? Empty classrooms, doors swinging in the breeze, no one, not even foreign exchange students, signing up for classes, not even on a bet, dust gathering atop the textbooks, tumbleweeds blowing down the hall...everyone suddenly having discovered that a network connection is really all the classroom you need, and 'tuition' is only 50 bucks a month...

[Traei]

12:03 AM on 07/27/2010

I find it hard to believe that there is no one in the government that can do something about this misleading advertising. It is false advertising, pure and simple. There is such a thing as a bait and switch. I also thought deceit to get federal funding of any type was punishment, like contractors who falsify documents or lie about their work to get funds.

This is just another way for the for-profit universities to inefficiently use federal funds for tuition on courses without really providing a benefit for both the student and the good of the country.

We need to stop this type of action and make sure that the customer is being providing exactly what is promised them in terms of an education. In turn, there needs to be policies and procedures put in place to prove out what students are learning and performance based demonstration of that learning for all colleges and universities, regardless if they are traditional or for-profit.

[hagagaga]

07:59 PM on 07/26/2010

A for-profit university is something that should not be legal.

[ssfahrer]

09:25 PM on 07/26/2010

Actually, without the profit motive, there is NO incentive in the educational system at all. It is the NON-profit colleges who have screwed up generation after generation of Americans. And now these screwed up people are running this nation (and all 50 states). The investigations should be done in the NON-profit schools first-- because THESE SCREWED UP PEOPLE have ruined what was truly great (pre-1968) and turned colleges and universities into bastions of 'affirmative action' in which 'political correctness' trumps the truth-- even in math and science!

[NJacademic]

10:04 PM on 07/26/2010

Clearly you are uninformed on the topic - Truth in science is tainted by the "for-profit" Christian colleges in rejecting science (I've read the course descriptions). As for the institutions named in the article, (corporate owned and responsible only to their shareholders) - it would be difficult to identify one that hadn't been investigated for some type of unethical admissions practices or had their financial aid offices raided by legal authorities.

And as for teaching the truth.....most American students don't learn the truth about their government and its history until they are in a college classroom that has not been censored by parents, school boards, and political manipualtion of primary and secondary curriculums.

[Ohioan4truth]

06:13 PM on 07/26/2010

I know of one woman, age 46, who enrolled in the University of Pheonix back in 2003 with their "online" program to be a paralegal. Her first studies were "How To Write A Diary". Doesn't all little girls know how to do that without going to a "college"? Her "study" material on the "subjects" she chose were all as ridiculous as that one. I don't like talking bad about people, but she is as smart as a rock. The program teamed her up with a "tutor" who gave up trying to "educated" her via a computer AND telephone calls thatlasted fro hours on end! They then "suggested" she hire a student from a local junior college to aid her "learning" experience. So, she padi that student "tutor" twenty dollars per study hour.

Guess what? She, after two years and taking all the required courses, went to her "graduation" and was handed her 'Certificate of Achievement"...whatever that is. Then the "tuition payments" started to arrive. She had applied for and received one hundred per cent "tuition loans" for those two years! When she realized the amount that she needed to repay, she had a heart attack! Seriously! A heart attack!

The only way for her to avoid having to pay her tuition was......enroll for a Bachelors Degree! And guess what she did? Yuppers! She's still taking those silly "online courses" as I type.

She now has a job at Walmart. Working besdie High School dropouts.

It's a total shame!

[Ohioan4truth]

06:14 PM on 07/26/2010

"educate" her via....typo.....I need to return to college.....LOL!

[Ohioan4truth]

06:17 PM on 07/26/2010

"repaired" paragraph.

The program teamed her up with a "tutor" who gave up trying to "educate" her via a computer AND telephone calls that lasted for hours on end! They then "suggested" she hire a student from a local junior college to aid her "learning" experience. So, she paid that student "tutor" twenty dollars per study hour.

There...I feel better now

[PBMac]

05:04 PM on 07/26/2010

This country is going to hell in a hand basket via one corporation and one for profit school at a time.

[DemIndyOH]

05:04 PM on 07/26/2010

Having earned degrees from both public and for-profit institutions, I have to say much of the success of a student is dependent on the student. I know enough people with liberal arts degrees from public universities who are unemployed. I also know graduates from for-profit schools who are unemployed as well. It is ridiculous to consider all for-profit schools the same and blame them for a graduate's lack of success.

Money wasted, is money wasted no matter where you burn it (public/for-profit). Yes, there are some unscrupulous vendors of education who prey on the uninformed. This is not so different than the public college that forces students to take classes that have no bearing whatsoever on their intended career either (ie. jogging, archery or history of art). I'm still waiting for the explanation on why I needed phyical education credits to graduate. In my eyes, it was just one of many ways the school can extract more money out of the student and extends the number of years required to complete the degree.

The best advice to students is to research ALL schools and find the reputable one that most closely matches your goals and objectives. NO degree no matter where it's from guarantees you a job if you are unable to adequately present yourself during an interview. An employer is not going to say, "oh, I see you've graduated from (_fill in your public school of choice_), no interview required - you're hired!".

[Ohioan4truth]

06:25 PM on 07/26/2010

I "see" you have the "typo" disease, too!

"physical education"......I feel so much better that I have company! And a fellow Ohioan, too!

F&F for both! And it appears I am your number one "fan", too!

Will wonders ever cease!

[Woody Brown]

04:54 PM on 07/26/2010

Personally, I have never understood how it is that these 'for-profit' 'colleges' are even legal. Their 'degrees' are as worthless as mail-order. They are an educational scam--one could learn more walkin' the streets and chattin'-up the homeless.

[3neuticals]

04:36 PM on 07/26/2010

These colleges are nothing more than a pipeline for g-money....and have been for decades. When was the last time that you saw a white male in one of their ads, let alone the primary subject?

Nope. School these days is no exception to what has become ubiquitous in our declining empire. Namely corporate cult propaganda. Forget about God, country or community. They'll prostitute their own family to make a buck.

[ssfahrer]

09:30 PM on 07/26/2010

And what's so wrong with prostitution, anyway? Just because society makes it 'illegal' doesn't make it wrong....

[MIMom]

03:54 PM on 07/26/2010

OK...how does one tell a good school from a bad one?

I'm looking for a good online program for a Master's, and most schools I am finding look like scams to me. I'd like to see an article on how to pick the right one.

[DocSkull]

04:09 PM on 07/26/2010

Go to a brick-and-mortar school with professors who have faces.

[PBMac]

04:58 PM on 07/26/2010

EXACTLY

[av10]

04:23 PM on 07/26/2010

Although I have never taken online courses, I would suggest checking the distance programs offered by reputable traditional schools.

For example, the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor is top tier. Here is a link to their online site:
http://www.rackham.umich.edu/current_students/masters_students/

[S Cooper]

03:18 PM on 07/26/2010

These are the same colleges that advertise heavily during Jerry Springer, Maury Povitch, Judge Judy... targeting poor, unemployed youth at home in the middle of the day watching trash tv. It's shameful.

(Watching trash tv on your sick days, well, that's different ;) )

[Chuck Mak]

02:49 PM on 07/26/2010

If For Profit schools were honest in their advertising, they'd look more like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJl0XuDKSjc