Some 800 trade school students are without federal financial aid after their campuses abruptly closed.
With two campuses in Los Angeles and one in San Bernardino, Career Colleges of America is well-known for offering a variety of medical vocational courses.
But CCA is now known for losing its accreditation this week amidst persistent financial troubles.
Inside the South Gate campus Thursday night, employees refused to explain why classes were cancelled or if payroll was being made. While outside, students and staff gathered in frustration.
Teacher Antonio Romo told NBC4 he hasn’t been paid in months and stands to lose his home.
CCA’s president Ron Schaechter took no questions Thursday night, but read from a prepared statement.
"Our goal is to make an arrangement that allows all students to complete their programs on time, to have their credits accepted and to ensure students are not charged more than what they contracted to pay with CCA," Schaechter said.
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"We are discussions with other institutions as we speak. We understand the urgency," he added.
The statement – reproduced in full below – continued, saying CCA tried for months to arrange a seamless transition, work that Schaechter said will continue.
Over the past several months, Career Colleges of America has been diligently working to either sell the institution or arrange a teach out with another institution. Although it was not successful with one institution, CCA continues to work with several other institutions and our regulatory agencies to make alternative arrangements that would be in the best interests of the students. Our goal is to make an arrangement that allows all students to complete their programs on time, to have their credits accepted and to ensure that students are not charged more than what they contracted to pay with CCA. We understand the difficulty and distress this has caused for the students, faculty and staff and we remain hopeful that we can still resolve this situation for their benefit. In that regard, we are in discussions with other institutions as we speak. We understand the urgency.
For the past 23 years, CCA has been committed to providing quality educational services for its students and a positive and productive environment for our staff. Over that time, we have successfully graduated thousands of students. We remain committed to our students, faculty and staff at this difficult time,
Ron Schaechter
President
Career Colleges of America
