School Accountability & Student Protections

Letter from 77 Organizations Asking for the Extension of the Suspension of Student of Loan Payments

  October 28, 2020 The Honorable Betsy DeVos Secretary of Education U.S. Department of Education 400 Maryland Ave., SW Washington, DC 20202 Dear Secretary DeVos: We, the 77 undersigned community, civil rights, consumer, [...]

Our Comment on Federal Student Aid’s Draft Strategic Plan FY 2020-24

Affiliation: Other Name and Name of Organization: This comment is submitted by James Haynes on behalf of Veterans Education Success. Part 2: Strategic Goals and Objectives X Strategic Goal 1 X Strategic Goal 3 X [...]

Letter from 20 groups to the Department of Education regarding the Center for Excellence in Higher Education

October 14, 2020 Secretary Betsy DeVos U.S. Department of Education 400 Maryland Ave., SW Washington, D.C. 20202 Dear Secretary DeVos: We urge the U.S. Department of Education to promptly address issues raised by [...]

National Organization Joint Statement Endorsing California Proposition 16

Visit The Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights to learn more and click here to view a PDF of the letter.  September 29, 2020 National Organization Joint Statement Endorsing California Proposition 16 On behalf [...]

Our Memorandum to the Federal Trade Commission regarding Ashford University

  MEMORANDUM REGARDING ASHFORD UNIVERSITY TO THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION Veterans Education Success presents the following information for consideration by the Federal Trade Commission. Veterans Education Success is a non-profit organization that works [...]

Our Comment to the Department of Education about the New Universal Borrower Defense Form

September 28, 2020   U.S. Department of Education 400 Maryland Avenue SW Washington, DC 20202 Via electronic submission  Re: Borrower Defense to Loan Repayment Universal Form, Docket Number: ED-2020-SCC-0043 Dear Sir/Ma’am: Thank you for the [...]

Our Comment on Proposed NC-SARA Manual Modifications

Attn: Board of NC-SARA re: Proposed Clarification Modification E - Discontinued Programs To Whom It May Concern: My name is Ramond Curtis, I am the State Policy Manager for Veterans Education Success. We work on [...]

Letter from Us and Three Higher Education Groups on Proposed NC-SARA Manual Modifications

National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements President/CEO and Board of Directors 3005 Center Green Drive Suite 130 Boulder, Colorado 80301 September 11, 2020 Re: Proposed NC-SARA Manual Modification Comments Dear President Williams and Members [...]

Comment to VA on Its Employees’ Conflicts of Interest in For-Profit Schools

August 21, 2020 Dr. Paul Lawrence, Undersecretary for Benefits Veterans Benefits Administration Department of Veterans Affairs 810 Vermont Avenue NW Washington, DC 20420 Via electronic submission Re: VBA’s Collection of Conflicting Interests Certification for Proprietary [...]

Our Testimony to the Education Dept. NACIQI Hearing on Accreditors

Testimony of Walter Ochinko Research Director, Veterans Education Success U.S. Department of Education National Advisory Council on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI) Review of the Higher Learning Commission July 29, 2020 Thank you for the [...]

Our Letter to VA and CSAAVE Requesting a Risk-Based Review of Ashford University

July 27, 2020   The Honorable Keith Boylan Deputy Secretary Veterans Services California Department of Veterans Affairs California State Approving Agency for Veterans Education 1227 O Street, Suite 625 Sacramento, CA 95814   Patrick Dworakowski, [...]

Letter from 43 Groups to Congress to Include Protections for Students in the Next Emergency Higher Education Funding Bill

Military Times: COVID Relief Package Includes Major Change in For-Profit Colleges’ Rules on GI Bill Benefits

“We are relieved and hopeful that this will finally remove the target from the backs of servicemembers, veterans, and military families,” said Carrie Wofford, president of Veterans Education Success, in a statement. Read the full [...]

Massachusetts AG Settles with PHEAA Following Allegations of Unfair and Deceptive Practices

February 10, 2021 AG HEALEY SECURES FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND RELIEF IN SETTLEMENT WITH MAJOR STUDENT LOAN SERVICER Resolves Claims that PHEAA Made Errors and Misrepresentations in Administering Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program; More than 200,000 Massachusetts Borrowers [...]

Stars & Stripes: House Democrats aim to use coronavirus relief package to end GI Bill loophole

“Closing the 90/10 loophole has been the top higher education priority for nearly all veterans and military organizations for many years, and we are relieved and hopeful that this will finally remove the target from [...]

Diverse Issues in Higher Education: A GAO Report Prompts Scrutiny of For-Profit College Conversions

"On Sept. 28, the nonprofit Veterans Education Success sent a petition to the Federal Trade Commission asking them to investigate Ashford University, a for-profit college. For-profit colleges, like Ashford, often pursue GI Bill funds because [...]

Our op-ed in Stars & Stripes: VA Should Rein in Predatory For-Profit Schools

McDonough Should Prioritize Putting An End to the Fleecing of America’s Veterans by Predatory For-Profit Colleges By Carrie Wofford As Denis McDonough prepares to take the helm as the new Secretary of Veterans Affairs, he [...]

Issue Brief from Student Borrower Protection Center: “Withholding Dreams”

Link to the Student Borrower Protection Center Issue Brief here.

Senators raise GI Bill questions at nomination hearing for VA Nominee Denis McDonough

In case you missed our live-tweeting, Senators asked important GI Bill questions of VA Secretary Nominee Denis McDonough at his confirmation hearing on January 27, 2021.  We are grateful that Senators on both sides of [...]

Be Careful of Income Sharing Agreements

By Alex Kish   At this point in the game, it might seem cliché to talk about the impact COVID-19 has had on higher education and how students have been forced online.  But that doesn’t [...]

Military Times: Women Veterans, Students Would See Expanded Services and Benefits Under New Law

After a lengthy wait, President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed into law a sweeping veterans policy measure that includes new protections for women veterans, student veterans and individuals struggling with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.... The [...]

TICAS: Unheard Voices: The Case for Improving Higher Education Complaint Systems

Marine Times: Congress finalizes sweeping veterans policy bill with new protections for women, students

“This landmark legislation will significantly weed out predatory colleges that seek to take advantage of veterans,” said Carrie Wofford, president of Veterans Education Success. She praised lawmakers for “stepping up to protect veterans and their [...]

Stars & Stripes: Congress passes sweeping end-of-year bill impacting ‘every corner’ of the veteran community

WASHINGTON — Congress approved a bill Wednesday that increases resources for homeless veterans, creates a Department of Veterans Affairs advisory committee for Native American veterans and mandates that every VA hospital hire a dedicated women’s [...]