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NY Times Questions For-Profit Colleges' Exploitation of Veterans. Bridgepoint Criticized
I'm growing *tired* of people polluting this discourse on for-profit education with thinly veiled opinion-based arguments. It's *fine* that you dislike for-profit education. I get it. It just feels like a *bad* thing. I want you to know I have no qualms about that. You have the right to feel icky about things. Ickiness is the substance of life. But ickiness does **not** hold substance for making adult conversation. I *repeat*, do not think for one second that your opinions have a place among this discourse. I'm not looking for analogies. I'm not looking for anecdotal evidence. I don't want the opinion of some anonymous ex-employee. I'm looking for hard facts on the issue. I want numbers. I want to know about the more than 60% percent drop-out rate for various degree programs at Ashford Universtiy [NYTimes][1]. I then want to compare that data to comparable school systems, such as non-profit state education[The CCO][2]. That way, I can draw my own conclusions, or better yet, I can read good press that utilizes these numbers or other objective information to make a substantial argument (after all, journalists are paid to be great writers and thinkers - I'm not). Analogies and anecdotal evidence are subject to the pressure of mis-information and bias. These tactics do not help critical thinkers form substantial conclusions. If you want to make the argument that federal aid should be prohibited from passing through the for-profit sector, great! Let's have that discussion. I think it's a good one - and it will require more evidence and research. I re-read this article while mentally replacing Bridgepoint with UC San Diego and suddenly there were parts that didn't line up. That's because it opens with the premise that Bridgepoint is bad, for-profit is bad, and that high-pressure persuasion is bad. I'm a advocate for the ethical requirement that the student's interests come first in education. That is why I would like to know if there was a breach in ethics by citing an investigation into these claims that high-persuasive tactics were used, or what "high-persuasion" means, or even that this is unique among for-profit schools. These are fine **opinions** to hold, but I already have plenty of opinions of my own. What I'm looking for is information. *Good* information. (To be fair, the San Diego Reader might not be the kind of publication I'm looking for. However, I found this link in one of the top results from google when searching this issue. That's why I mention discourse. I want us talking about the facts. If there is a problem with for-profit education or bridgepoint, let's get the healthy articles to the top results and leave this fluff for those who need to entertain their own pre-inclinations, or better yet - leave it unsaid). [1]: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/11/education/11col… [2]: http://www.captionsverbatimpro.com/2011/04/21/172/— April 10, 2012 7:47 p.m.