BELLEVUE, Neb. (AP) - The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has told Bellevue University and other schools that it intends to disapprove the enrollment of new GI Bill students, saying the schools have given erroneous, deceptive or misleading information to prospective students.
The VA said in a news release Monday that it intends to carry through on the warning unless the schools take corrective action withing 60 days. The sanction wouldn’t affect current GI Bill students who maintain continuous enrollment, the VA said.
The university said the VA warning stems from a February 2019 state prosecutor filing in Sarpy County District Court. The state alleges school promotional material misled prospective students from May 2012 through at least March 2016 about the accreditation status for its Bachelor of Science in nursing program.
“Bellevue University categorically denies the allegations that we misled or would mislead any student,” said university spokeswoman Cris Hay-Merchant on Tuesday.
In a November court filing, the university said the state’s “claims fail in whole or in part because Bellevue University has always been an accredited institution of higher learning.”
The state filing said it was seeking civil penalties of up to $2,000 for each violation of the state’s Consumer Protection Act and Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
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