[1][16] On March 12, 2019, Bridgepoint Education reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that it had made unreliable statements about its earnings and losses.
[32] In April 2019, Bridgepoint changed its name to Zovio and moved its stock listing to the NASDAQ, where it trades under the ticker symbol ZVO.
[35] In 2021, co-founder and CEO Andrew Clark left Zovio [36] and two new board members were appointed, John Silvanus Wilson, Jr., former Morehouse College President, and Ron Huberman, former superintendent of Chicago's public schools.
[40] California Judge Eddie C. Sturgeon found for the plaintiffs on March 3, 2022, his 49-page opinion citing evidence that Zovio deceived students about their ability to become teachers, nurses, social workers, drug and alcohol counselors using their degrees; and misled students about how much financial aid they would receive; misrepresented federal financial aid rules, understated costs of attendance, the time needed to complete degree requirements, their ability to transfer credits, and evidence of deception within the admissions department, and Zovio's tolerance for repeat compliance offenders.
On December 3, 2014, a lawsuit was filed in Arizona federal court charging that Bridgepoint Education was violating the Telephone Consumer Protection Act by robocalling for purposes of sales.
The OIG audit reached the following conclusions: The stock of Bridgepoint Education fell the most in almost five months when the misuse of federal student aid was first publicly disclosed in 2009.
[47] When the official results were released in 2011, Senator Tom Harkin said this audit "reveals the same troubling pattern of for-profit colleges' taking advantage of students and taxpayers."
"[51] Kathleen Tighe, Inspector General with the U.S. Department of Education, testified at the hearing that in an audit of Ashford, she discovered the university was improperly distributing federal financial aid to students.
[51] For the 2006–2007 award year during which the audit was performed, it is estimated Bridgepoint had not returned $1.1 million in improperly obtained student aid to the federal government.
[49] Bridgepoint chose not to send executives to the HELP committee hearing while engaged in negotiations with Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA).
In 2014, Bridgepoint Education settled a lawsuit with the State of Iowa for $7.25 million, denying any "wrongdoing but agreed to not use any 'unconscionable or coercive tactics' to encourage students to enroll.
"[54] On December 3, 2014, a lawsuit was filed in Arizona federal court charging that the company was violating the Telephone Consumer Protection Act by robocalling sales prospects.
[46] In 2016, a former senior vice president at Ashford University alleged that Bridgepoint falsified its financial reports by inaccurately projecting the student retention rate.
[56] In November 2017, the California Attorney General brought a lawsuit against Ashford University and its parent company Bridgepoint for engaging in "unlawful marketing, sales and debt collection practices".
[57] California Judge Eddie C. Sturgeon found for the plaintiffs on March 3, 2022, his 49-page opinion citing evidence that Zovio deceived students about their ability to become teachers, nurses, social workers, drug and alcohol counselors using their degrees; and misled students about how much financial aid they would receive; misrepresented federal financial aid rules, understated costs of attendance, the time needed to complete degree requirements, their ability to transfer credits, and evidence of deception within the admissions department, and Zovio's tolerance for repeat compliance offenders.
[63][64] On November 15, 2017, Bridgepoint suspended enrolling GI Bill students for Ashford University after a controversial exposé on the school appeared in the Chronicle of Higher Education.
[65] In late November 2017, the California Attorney General brought a lawsuit against Ashford University and Bridgepoint for engaging in unlawful marketing, sales, and debt collection practices.
[61] Reports by journalists, watchdogs, whistleblowers, and politicians alleged that Ashford University engages in misleading and predatory practices to enroll GI Bill students, particularly during the Trump administration and the Betsy DeVos-led education department deregulations.