WASHINGTON (AP) — Former federal prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald has agreed to serve as an independent
monitor of a troubled for-profit education company serving 72,000 students that has agreed to sell or
close its campuses, the Education Department said Friday.
Fitzgerald prosecuted high-profile cases against Lewis “Scooter” Libby, a top aide to Vice President Dick
Cheney, and former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
As part of an agreement with the Education Department, Corinthian Colleges, based in Santa Ana,
California, has said it will close a dozen U.S. campuses in 11 states and place 85 up for sale. The
company owns Everest College, Heald College and WyoTech schools. About a dozen others in Canada will
also be sold.
The company also agreed that an independent monitor would examine its compliance, including making sure
that plans are followed that allow students to complete their programs. Some students are eligible for
full refunds, and the company has said it would work with the monitor to establish a reserve fund of at
least $30 million to pay those funds.
The company, which receives about $1.4 billion annually in federal student aid, continues to face
multiple state and federal investigations.
The department in June placed Corinthian on heightened financial monitoring with a 21-day waiting period
to receive federal funds. The department said the company failed to provide adequate paperwork and
failed to comply with requests to address concerns about company practices. The department said the
concerns included allegations of falsifying job placement data used in marketing claims to prospective
students, and allegations of altered grades and attendance.
Libby was convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice. He was sentenced to 30 months in prison, but
President George W. Bush commuted the prison sentence. Blagojevich is serving a 14-year prison sentence
for political corruption.
Fitzgerald in 2001 was appointed a U.S attorney in