ITT Technical Institute To Cease Operations Friday

The for-profit college ITT Technical Institute says in a federal filing that it will stop operating Friday. Carmel, Indiana-based ITT Educational Services Inc. said in a Wednesday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it would stop services about a week after it announced it would close its campuses. But a lot of community colleges in multiple states want to help displaced students.

The company's main lender recently seized ITT's bank accounts. The college chain is shutting down all 130 of its U.S. campuses. The move affects more than 35,000 students and more than 8,000 jobs.
 
Federal education officials banned the company last month from enrolling new students who use federal financial aid. The Education Department said the company had become a risk to students and taxpayers.  ITT has laid off at least 660 Indiana workers. It had about 1,900 students in Indiana.

But community colleges in a number of states, including Illinois, are helping those displaced by last week’s abrupt announcement at ITT.

Parkland College in Champaign is among those reaching out. Dean of Enrollment Management Julie Marlatt says the Illinois community college board has sent them the names of a couple of students from the area who attended classes at the ITT Tech campus in Springfield - the only one in downstate Illinois.

But he says ITT Tech students from the Chicago area have reached out as well. Marlatt hopes to register some of them at Parkland in time for midterm classes, which start in about a month. 

“And so that they reach out to us, the better it will be to try to get them situated to review," she said. "Do they want to transfer any credits, or are they going to be better off to start new, in a different program here at the community college.”

Ann Rondeau, the President of the College of DuPage, says the Glen Ellyn based community college plans to offer the affected ITT students one-on-one counseling later this month. She say there's an obligation to help.

"This is almost a moral commitment to people who were dedicated to learning, who for circumstances outside of their control had things pulled from under them," she said. "So we feel as though not only can we be nimble, but we should be nimble and agile in response to the needs of learners."

Dr. Rondeau says the college will offer both academic and financial counseling for students on September 22nd. She says this situation is a perfect example of how College of DuPage can quickly adapt to meet an educational need in the community.

More than 700 Illinois students are affected by the closure of the nationwide for-profit ITT Technical Institute. Under federal rules, ITT Tech students can keep and transfer their credits from the school, but must also retain their student loan debt.

The Parkland College Foundation is offering $500 scholarships to those ITT Tech students who transfer.  Academic programs similar to those at offered at ITT include business, computer science, drafting, and graphic design.

Richland Community College in Decatur is also reaching out to those who attended ITT Tech.