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<DIV class=timestamp>October 5, 2011</DIV>
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<H1><NYT_HEADLINE version="1.0" type=" ">Fraud and Online
Learning</NYT_HEADLINE></H1><NYT_BYLINE></NYT_BYLINE><NYT_TEXT>
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<P>Online college courses have made higher education possible for untold numbers
of working adults who cannot enroll in traditional classes and need flexibility
to receive instruction at home. But online courses are also particularly
vulnerable to student aid fraud, a growing problem that federal officials must
move quickly to control. </P>
<P>A report from the Department of Education’s Office of the Inspector General
says that since 2005 it has opened 100 investigations and is evaluating 49
additional complaints, including one that could potentially involve as many as
10,000 participants. </P>
<P>Distance-learning students rarely show up on any campus, so their identities
can be easily falsified. Fraud rings target community colleges and other
open-enrollment schools that offer low-priced, online programs. The fraud rings
enroll “straw” students who provide their names, dates of birth and Social
Security numbers to obtain federal financial aid. The ring leaders then take a
share of the student loan money that schools disburse to students after tuition
and other allowable costs are paid. </P>
<P>In one case, a defendant at an online community college in Arizona incurred
only $600 in tuition and fees for a summer course, but was awarded a total of
$7,060 in federal aid, which is generally calculated based on income
eligibility. This money is meant to cover living, transportation and other
expenses that online students may not incur. Fraud rings have succeeded in
enrolling prison inmates, even though they are not eligible for federal student
aid, as well as “students” who were illiterate. </P>
<P>The inspector general’s office says participants in 42 different fraud rings
have been convicted and more than $7.5 million in restitution and fines have
been ordered in the past six years. This may be only a small portion of the
problem. Some rings involve hundreds of participants, and it is unlikely that
either the Office of the Inspector General or the Department of Justice has
resources to track down and prosecute them all. </P>
<P>To improve security, the government needs to put colleges on notice that they
are responsible for disbursing aid to eligible students only. It should not
allow payments for expenses a student does not actually have. Congress should
change student aid to fix this problem. </P><NYT_CORRECTION_BOTTOM>
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<DIV><FONT size=2 face=Verdana>___________________________</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2 face=Verdana>Wayne A. Fox<BR><A
href="mailto:wayne.a.fox@gmail.com">wayne.a.fox@gmail.com</A><BR></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>