Why is University of Phoenix recruiting at Ivy Tech?

The words "University of Phoenix" usually aren't followed by anything worthy of praise in the academic world. It might be that their accreditation is in jeopardy, or that their recruiters used strong-arm sales tactics to get students, or that they're closing 115 locations. The state of California has even cut off state-based financial aid to the University of Phoenix, and many other for-profit educational organizations, because of their low graduation rate and high default rates.

So why is Ivy Tech, an institution set up for Hoosiers to get into (or in my case, back into) higher learning, allowing a paper mill like University of Phoenix to set up shop and recruit students on campus? I saw it at the Lawrence campus this morning.

It is not uncommon for any number of trade schools, universities, and even employers to set up booths at any number of colleges or universities, or to attend academic fairs. Especially at a college that has a lot of people that will need to transfer to a university at some point to finish their degree.

But by letting them onto the campus, Ivy Tech is lending some amount of credibility to them. Credibility that they neither have earned or deserve. They exist only to leech off of government loans and grants to give their shareholders a profit.