- Seth Perlman / AP Photos
- Bruce Rauner, the Republican candidate for governor, has invested in for-profit schools accused of fraud.
UPDATE: This post has been updated to include a quote from Thomas Zimmerman, lead attorney for the students in a class action lawsuit against the Illinois School of Health Careers and ForeFront Education.
It’s a powerful statement. But as a longtime venture capitalist and investor, Rauner hasn’t always put his money where his ideals are.
ForeFront’s schools were part of the trend. In 2003 ForeFront acquired the Illinois School of Health Careers, with campuses in the Loop and on the far northwest side near O’Hare. Its brochures informed prospective students that the school was “institutionally accredited.” It boasted of a “distinguished reputation in Chicago for graduating and placing high-quality students into allied health professions.”
According to GTCR’s website, the firm still owns ForeFront and the School of Health Careers, which means the GOP candidate is still profiting from it.
In 2011 the federal government, the state of Illinois, and ten other states sued the company and its schools, alleging they committed widespread fraud while collecting $11 billion in federal student aid between 2003 and 2011. Student recruiters—known as assistant directors of admission, or ADAs—were paid solely on the basis of how many warm bodies they were able to enroll, and almost anyone was admitted if it meant more money coming in, the feds said.
The suit is still in litigation.
