Republican lawmakers called for the Department of Education’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) to review the Biden administration’s conduct against the nation’s largest Christian university.
“Education Secretary [Miguel] Cardona, basically came out fairly early … publicly indicated that he was going to shut down Grand Canyon University and go in that way. There was Congresswoman [Rosa] DeLauro calling it a predatory school, which it is not,” Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., told Fox News Digital. “They are trying to go after them for allegations which have not really been substantiated yet. So, it’s changed to be a real problem that seems to be biased.”
In April, Biggs, along with his fellow Arizona GOP Reps. Paul Gosar, Eli Crane, and Debbie Lesko, penned a letter to the OIG to conduct an investigation into the Department of Education’s actions concerning Grand Canyon University (GCU).
Their letter states that the department’s “actions are a direct result of their well-documented disapproval of successful for-profit colleges and their unexplainable opposition to GCU’s 2018 conversion from for-profit to non-profit, which was supported by the Internal Revenue Service, the Higher Learning Commission, and the State of Arizona.”
“Americans should ask why the Biden administration is choosing to ignore the slew of pervasive issues within the American higher education system and is, instead, unjustly slapping a record fine on a faith-based institution,” Rep. Crane told Fox News Digital.
Instead, Crane suggested the Biden administration should be focused on anti-Israel protests that are occurring on college campuses across the country, which he called “morally bankrupt.”
“They serve as breeding grounds for antisemitism and anti-American hatred, yet this administration is laser-focused on taking down a private Christian school over claims that they were already cleared of in federal court,” Crane said. “I’m proud to stand alongside Reps. Biggs, Gosar, and Lesko to stand up for religious freedom and against the Biden administration’s targeting of the largest Christian university in the country.”
The Department of Education has launched several investigations into various universities for possible violations of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.
“The Biden administration has a tyrannical track record of targeting institutions and people who do not acquiesce to its radical agenda,” Rep. Lesko told Fox News Digital. “This renewed harassment of Grand Canyon University is un-American and unconstitutional. I will continue to stand with the men and women at this fine university as they fight against this tragic encroachment.”
During a House Appropriations Committee hearing on April 10, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., asked Cardona how the administration is working to shut down GCU, which she labeled as “a predatory for-profit school.”
“Last year, your Department took action against Grand Canyon University, a predatory for-profit college, over the school’s failure to accurately disclose its cost to students, driving up the true cost for those students requiring for them to pay for continuation courses before they would graduate – scam courses added about $10,000 or more to the cost of education to these kids,” DeLauro said.
“Going after predatory schools preying on first generation students. They have flashy marketing materials, but the product is not worth the paper it is printed on. Increased enforcement budget to go after these folks and crack down. Levied largest fine in history against a school that lied about costs and terminated a school from Title IV. We are cracking down not only to shut them down, but to send a message not to prey on students,” Cardona responded.