LEGAL SERVICES CENTER OF HARVARD LAW SCHOOL
CENTRO DE SERVICIOS LEGALES
122 Boylston Street
Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts 02130-2246
TEL: (617) 522-3003 • FAX: (617) 522-0715
Rep. David Price
2108 Rayburn HOB
Washington DC 20515-3304
202-225-1784
January 23, 2017
Dear Representative Price:
The Project on Predatory Student Lending recently filed a claim in the bankruptcy case of ITT on
behalf of former students. The basis of the claim, in addition to the allegations and evidence
developed by federal enforcement agencies, state Attorneys General, and former ITT employees,
is the testimony of over 2000 former ITT students. This testimony presents a consistent picture
of ITT’s systematic deceptive recruiting and financial aid practices.
Over the last decade of its existence, ITT took in over $8 billion in federal student aid, the
majority of which came in the form of federal student loans. This allocation has not been a good
investment for students or taxpayers. ITT used federal funds to promote its programs through
false advertising and coercive sales tactics. ITT’s investment in education was dwarfed by its
expenditures on advertising and executive compensation.
The results speak for themselves. Data from 2014 show that on average, ITT graduates earn on
average the same or less than high school graduates with no college education. Approximately
one in five ITT students defaults on their federal student loans within three years. Of the
remaining non-defaulted ITT borrowers, less than half have repaid a single dollar of the principal
of their loan balance.
To illustrate how ITT’s unfair and deceptive acts and practices have affected your constituents,
we have attached a copy of the complaint that has been filed, along with the accompanying
testimony from your constituents in North Carolina’s 4th congressional district who attended
ITT. These statements represent just a sample of the harm ITT inflicted on your constituents,
countless others in your district, and many more across the country.
As you know, federal law provides for student loan debt relief for students whose schools misled
them or engaged in other misconduct. Please help your constituents, former students of ITT, get
the federal student loan relief that they deserve. Ask the Department of Education to forgive
federal student loans for former students of ITT.
Respectfully,
Project on Predatory Student Lending
Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School
TESTIMONY OF FORMER ITT STUDENTS FROM NORTH CAROLINA’S 4TH
CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT
The following testimony comes from your constituents in North Carolina’s 4th congressional
district. It was filed on January 3, 2017 in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern
District of Indiana, as part of the ITT bankruptcy proceedings. 1 The testimony was filed in
support of a class action adversary proceeding complaint on behalf of all former ITT students. 2
"[I] have it on my resume no one will even call me back. it was bad enough that i didnt get a
proper education but now this its horrible." (ID 9581)
"[T]hey told me they have a 95% job placement rating. [A]fter graduation i only recieved one
call in 5 years. [W]hen i called to go in there, set up an appointment, got there they were never
there or available." (ID 9581)
"They stated on many occassions that their job placement level for graduates was in the 90th
percentile. Thy also stated that they would help to find paid internships while taking the
program. My entire time there, I never even heard of someone getting an internship. Also there is
only one place that I know of that anyone was ever hired to from ITT and that is HCL America,
one the hire rate is extremely small, only 3 from my graduating class and the pay rate was
grossly less than the industry average and less than even the rate that recruiter's were paying the
no experience candidates. Also the Network/System Administrator jobs thatvthey say you are
learning are impossible to get without an additional 10 years of on the job experience. Definitely
not the $25-$30 dollars an hour that I was tild that I would be making straight out of school."
(ID 8946)
"They promised that I would be qualified for a system administrator position which is a 100%
lie. Those positions generally require a bachelor's degree AND 10 years of industry experience.
Upon completing the Associate's portion of my education I still have trouble being considered
for even entry level IT opportunities because ther eis no training for the positions that are
prerequisites to the system administrator jobs. 2-5 years minimum in ticketing systems, helpdesk,
desktop support, troubleshooting, remote desktop assistance, A+ certification, Network +
certification; all of which are just the basic prerequisites before you even have a chance to
possibly be licky enough for someone to give you an opportunity as a Jr System Administrator. I
had 3.96 GPA and I would not be able to pass the A+, Network+ nor the Microsoft Server
Certification exams that were listed on the front of the text books." (ID 8946)
1 In re ITT ESI, No. 16-07207-JMC-7A (Bankr. S.D. Ind. filed Sept. 16, 2016).
2 Villalba et al. v. ITT ESI et al. No. 17-AP-50003 (Bankr. S.D. Ind. filed Jan. 3, 2017).