False Claims- Financial Aid Fraud - Official Misconduct
07/31/2011
***Abuse includes falsification, distortion, or misrepresentation of information from a school official. The College Official’s actions towards me are fraudulent, Intimidating, harassing and unacceptable to me. I want the United States Of America to prosecute to the fullest extent of the law and I am placing all involved under a citizen arrest and be held accountable. FULLY *********
This is a formal complaint against Brown Mackie College-Phoenix-Tucson, The Art institute of Phoenix and EDMC in its entirety. I started brown Mackie on 11/30/2009 I enrolled in the program to get an associate’s of science degree in Surgical Technology which was $24, 000.00 when I started the program. College officials told me they were nationally accredited which were 96 credit hours approx. 1400 hours. I found out in august 2010 that the accreditation department was coming to accredit the program which I was already enrolled in and the officials lied to me and everyone else in that program. Since I started I have been on the DEANs list and PRESIDENTS list and received a CLASSIC CITIZEN award as well as Mentoring for new students who come in as well as volunteer my time to the children’s first academy every time the school has helped the community.
I never missed not one single day of school in 14 months, until I was Forced to sit out a month in February 2010 (WILLFUL OBSTRUCTION OF LEARNING) due to the College Surgical Tech Administrator who was the Head of the Department, telling at the time, told me Donna you are going to have to sit out in February 2011 because no one is teaching that class next month and it is no longer a required class to take as credits for your associates degree in surgical technology" I said well put me in a class I need, I said back. I don’t want to sit out... She returned with well you are one month ahead of everyone so they have to catch up to you. I said BUT I DONT WANT TO SIT OUT. Shayna Labou said there is really nothing I can do so she walks me to the financial aid Department and tells Patricia (The Financial aid supervisor) that I need to sit out next month in February and then she walks away and leaves me with Patricia. I said Patti I don’t want to sit out, and I am Very upset I wanted to have perfect attendance through my whole academic career.
She said ok you can leave now. I was dumb founded. So I went to Patrick Selenas who works at the registrar’s office and I asked him, what is the next class you have me scheduled for? And he said Pharmacy for the surgical technologist. I said thank you and left. But I was even dumber Founded and totally confused at the fact that I received a phone a phone call about two weeks later from an admissions rep that says Donna I need you to come in and sign a new enrollment agreement. I said WHAT?? WHY? She added well you’re no longer enrolled here at brown Mackie Phx and if you want to start your class in two weeks you need to re-enroll. I WAS IN COMPLETE SHOCK. I never dropped out I had my next class scheduled I was so upset. My now PERFECT ATTENDANCE and DEANS LITS was ruined. I made a name for myself at Brown Mackie and everyone who works there knows me. I went back to the college and I looked at the enrollment agreement and I noticed it said a little over 33, 000 as the cost for attendance. I said this is CRAZY it was originally paying 24, 000 now I have to pay 33, 000 she said well if you want to start class in two weeks.
So I felt like I had no choice because I never wanted to take off a month. She also said I need you to fill out this form why you dropped out of school. I SAID I NEVER DROPPED OUT I WAS FORCED TO SIT OUT SO PLEASE GET YOUR FACTS CORRECT. She said well go ahead and fill this paper out anyway I need to put it in your file cause you are on probation it’s a standard thing that has to do with financial aid when you drop out.. I was confused. Here I have this new lady talking down to me like I was a loser because she thinks I dropped out. NOT CORRECT!!! FORCED TO WITHDRAW! I was not yelling either I just felt like I got hit by a truck and I was in shock..
I went to financial aid and all my aid was messed up now. I had to fill out a new award now when I already had it to where I could survive on the extra aid for food and to help out with gas and insurance. I completed 8 credits for the term but they were acting like the college was keeping that money cause like I said three months later they refunded some of the tuition money, but after three months of bitching they finally gave me a refund but only for the class and fee not for the book charges. Two days later I’m in class and financial aid want to see me so I leave class and Carol said I need you to sign this award, I said I did with Patti the other day. Carol said well it’s wrong, so sign this award letter, I trusted the official and I signed it. I went back to class with my copy and i noticed she was trying to take out a Parent plus loan out on me when I am an independent student on disability doing my best to rehabilitate myself. So i went back and told carol you had me sign a fraud false document, I want that original copy I signed, you can’t take a parent loan out on me I am an independent disable student and I am separate from my parents.
She gave me the biggest attitude. I said have the correct award letter, a new one, and I will come back next break, I went back and told her I will review the new one but I need to get back to class. I will look this one over and bring it back later. She said “I WILL JUST HAVE YOU PULLED OUT OF CLASS” LITERALLY YELLING AT ME WITH THE BIGGEST ATTITUDE. I said go ahead but right now I am missing out on learning because of the fraud false claim you made in the first place. So my next break I took my classmate
Tiffany who can testify to this fact) with me to see carol cause I was afraid to go by myself and she was still being rude to me and harassing me, yelling at me, in front of tiffany. Carol said just sign the the damn form. I asked carol why the date said 2/25/2011 and I am signing it in June 2011. Carol yelled again sign it. I said please don’t get an attitude with me because of the fraud false claims you made in the first place. Carol is a trusted official and knowingly had me sign a financial aid document that would be a lie if given to a United States of America Official, so I signed the award document because I trusted her to do the right thing.
Tiffany could not believe the nerve of carol treating me that way and neither could I. I also noticed when I got on my student portal to check my degree audit there were two separate DIFFERENT degree audits. I was confused once again. Here I am trying doing my best to rehabilitate myself and i had created a positive, safe environment at school for myself for the past 14 months. In a matter of two weeks the college had made fraud false claims that were confusing, uncomfortable, and I feel very unsafe. I was crushed by these people that seemed like they no longer cared about me and my accomplishments of perfect attendance and my G.P.A of 3.71 and my safety. The Student Portal has false claims and information on the portal about my grades and my aid and needs an investigation. The college has three different portals that are all False, misleading, confusing, and distorted. They college has a lack of ability to management skills and financial documents.
I didn’t understand what the college had done to my little green progress degree line in the student portal, to see what I had left till I graduated. I went an spoke to Patrick Salenas in registrar, he said I have nothing to do with the portal, he said talk to bonnie, so I went to bonnie she said you need to log on to the new portal, I said what new portal and she told me. The new portal had no degree audit, and if i wanted to check my financial aid or account summary I had to click in the new portal that took me to the old one. I started having an issue and concerns with the student portal because it said i attempted 4 credits on one portion of the portal and the class was listed as unsuccessful attempt... and then I went to the other degree audit and it said I had changed programs. Which I NEVER did and it had a different class listed as credits taken credits unsuccessful. for two months I was putting tickets in to talk to someone higher up and I didn’t get much response other than a revolving door. I’m about to rip my hair out cause no one seems to think anything is wrong with my portal.
I finally put a complaint into AZ Department of Post-Secondary Education and the President of the school called me and I went to talk to her and told her ALL the issues but I really didn’t get to far other then her apologizing ALOT for everyone at the college. She commented on how detailed I am even over people that worked under her. She finally saw my side and realized I was having several problems and they were addressed again by all the departments but nothing was properly handled. The college and everyone down there other than the instructors have driven me to the point that I don’t even care what they think of me, I just want to address and correct mistakes that are not mine.
They willfully held me from learning; they forced me to ruin my 14 months perfect attendance. Not to mention I had Pell grant money of 925.00 that the college said they returned because my 8 credits was not considered half time with the department of education. When I checked the NSDLS it said nothing about returned money. I called the department of edu, they said the school is the only one that can update the grant part of the site, and as soon as the college updates the information they have it posts to e.d.u site that day, but Patti in my financial aid office said it don’t update for (6) six months. The information from patti was a complete blatant lie from a trusted official at the college. So it was charged back to my account as -925.00. I sent an email to carol Swanson that I wanted a copy of every original financial document so I could see that the money was returned to the department of education she said
(Copied from original response e-mail)
On Jul 26, 2011 7:24 PM, ", Carol" <cs*********@brownmackie.edu> wrote:
> Donna,
> I have start to work on your request but the r2t4 will not be completed for 30 days and we do not have access to NSLDS although you do by logging in to NSLDS.ed.gov . I have also forward this to Patricia Curtis the Director of Student Financial Services.
> Sincerely,
>
> Carol
>end email
I was under the impression that the rT24 was to be completed 30 days from withdrawal. It’s now 5 months later and they didn’t complete the form, which is against the law per the department of education. I also was given a re-pack of aid but carol and the college, were factiously trying to take a parent plus loan out on me, but I told them to give me my original back. I was given a copy of my ledger card which clearly states in carols handwriting, I attempted 8 credits and I was Half-time, but they withdrew me and tried to keep the my Pell grant money and my tuition for the class they were no longer offering for my program I enrolled in. Also the new award repack I signed it stated I was a graduate student and not a repack which is false, and I asked carol about it in front of tiffany and she just gave me an attitude and a half answer about why it said that so I left confused and appalled. My account says 4 years of aid but I am a 2 year student.
I REQUIRE an investigation of my whole file and all records and an audit done on the financial aid department of Brown Mackie College PHX-TUCS- Art institute and there EDMC and their cohorts, done by the Arizona Commission/Board for private Postsecondary Education, NASSGAP, Arizona higher education, and the proper authorities for a financial aid audit and any other authority you see fit. Also
I was enrolled in two prior colleges and gave them a copy of my transcript but they made me take a compass test to determine if I had the ability to benefit and they said I failed the English part of the compass test and forced me to take a FUNDAMENTAL OF ENGLISH CLASS, but they already knew I could benefit due to my prior college records with mostly A’s for the classes I took. I feel the college does this intentionally to get people off track on purpose so they can keep the students money for the 4 or 8 credit terms. The college is showing a BAD DEBT from me as part of that curriculum change of over 400 dollars for that term and the class they never gave me to me. If this information is found to be true this is considered PRE-MEDITATED FRAUD and WILLFUL OBSTRUCTION OF LEARNING and want The College and their Cohorts to be held ACCOUNTABLE. I feel I have been the best student I could be to represent the school in an extra ordinary positive up-lifting way, since I enrolled in 2009. the College has totally burdened me because of this whole situation of me bring a drop-out and taking months to return the money that was rightfully mine to live on. This whole situation has CONSUMED me, my TIME, and my sanity trying to correct the the wrongs the college officials have bestowed upon me.
It has caused me undue hardship and I feel sabotaged, and intimidated by the official’s actions towards me. This can’t be the thanks I get for all the hard work I put into my education and representing Brown Mackie Phx- Tucson- EDMC- The art institute of Phoenix to the best of my abilities. I feel they willfully obstructed me from learning and I want a complete audit done of my financial account the three enrollment agreements I signed starting from 250 a credit for general education classes to 275 a credit for SURGICAL Core and 330 for CONCENTRATION. The program I stated which was an associate of science degree in surgical technologist. My student portal says I transferred to a different program but never did that was 24000.00 I want my money refunded or adjusted accordingly and my school records to reflect I did drop out of school and that I did not transfer to another program. I was under the understanding that I was a half time student because i took 8 credits in the term. They said because it’s not listed in the catalog for a leave of absence, but I didn’t leave and the college says I attempted 8 credits and did not complete them, which is false. I can’t see how I could have taken a full 12 credits when the college forced me to take a month off and didn’t offer any class for me to take in return.
They are to be held responsible for the cost of this occurrence from their pocket not mine I don’t want the college’s burden they cause by lying to me and falsifying Documents about the program I started and reflecting on my record. The student portal needs to be investigated; it seems distorted, fictitious, misleading and just plain falsely manipulated. The college has caused undue hardship on me and according to the 2009/2010 catalog they should not and will not do that to a student. The college has, financially, and emotionally caused undue hardship to me. I have proof of all documents. Connie mallard who is the president spoke to me and addressed issues and as she agreed with me that the actions toward me were wrong and should never have happened. I told her at the time after ALL HER APOLOGIES and she was very kind but I don’t think she understood how burdened all this has been on me and still is. Nothing got handled to my satisfaction.
This complaint states all the harassment Carol Swanson used towards me in an Intimidating, abusive way and the false Document award letter that she had me sign to take out a fictitious loan, and by her willful obstruction of learning by pulling me out of class while I was trying to learn and the College and all their cohorts as a whole for being an aggressive and greedy for-profit institution and for not keeping me in there best interest above monetary gain. Also in financial aid, Patricia Curtis, who stated “here comes trouble” when I walked in to the aid office, and the admissions department for rail-rodding me into a 33, 120 dollar contract that was supposed to be 24, 000.00. The complaint is towards the admission and financial aid officials for their aggressive, intimidation toward me to sign legal forms for contracts and financial aid award letter before I had a chance to look them over thoroughly, then basically using my education as a scare tactic to get me to sign the forms. Carol for yelling at me and treating me like I was a minority and feeling as though I can’t even ask questions about anything let alone aid money. The Officials have made me feel so uncomfortable to even step into the financial aid offices at the College or to even talk to the Officials in person. They are all held to a professional standard and having anything less than the standard of care is misconduct that has and is adversely affecting the interest of me personally as a student and my studies and has adversely affected me as a human being pushed around, and humiliated with their bullying, unprofessional, unacceptable misconduct. It also adversely affects EDMC in its whole entirety, Brown Mackie College- Phoenix-Tucson, art institutes and/or its reputation. I have supporting documents and witness to the lack of safety and support, and best interest of me as a student.
***Abuse includes falsification, distortion, or misrepresentation of information from a school official. The College Official’s actions towards me are fraudulent, Intimidating, harassing and unacceptable to me. I want the United States Of America to prosecute to the fullest extent of the law and I am placing all involved under a citizen arrest and be held accountable. FULLY
I should never, nor should anyone else feel the way I was made to feel and still feel.
BROWN MACKIE COLLEGE ALSO LEAD ME TO BELIEVE I HAD TO BUY MY BOOKS IN THE BOOK STORE INSIDE THE COLLEGE, I was not allowed to get funds for my books and supplies anywhere else, The officials would not release my aid unless I filled out a stipends paper which no one ever told me I needed too. THE COLLEGE OVER CHARGED ME FOR ALL MY BOOKS AND SUPPLIES AND DIDN’T OFFER USED BOOKS.
I feel with all the colleges they already have in place, this has all been a PRE-MEDITATED act against me and the united states of America.
