From The Trussville Tribune staff reports
The University of Phoenix will cancel $141 million in student debt and agree to pay $50 million in cash to settle allegations of deceptive advertising in a case brought by the Federal Trade Commission.
The settlement ends a dispute over a 2012 advertising campaign in which the for-profit college embellished partnerships with major companies such as Adobe, AT&T and Twitter. The campaign promoted job opportunities for students, which there was no such agreement.
The ad campaign in question was called “Let’s Get To Work!” It follows a period in which The University of Phoenix was suffering from falling enrollment numbers.
The majority of the companies mentioned in the ads were only part of the college’s “Workforce Solutions” program, which provided tuition discounts to employees in exchange for the companies promoting the college.
According to the FTC, the ads focused on Hispanic and military members.
In one television spot, which aired in 2012, a vehicle drove through a packed parking lot in search of a parking spot. After the narrator says that the college works with major companies, the cars in the parking lot were lifted out of their spots and replaced with logos from companies.
Students eligible will receive a letter that informs them that their debt has been canceled.