Courtney Jorstad  |  March 26, 2015

Category: Closed Class Actions

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A class action settlement between Excelsior College and a group of current and former nursing students, who alleged that the college’s distance learning nursing program “was devoid of any education” because it did not prepare them to pass the necessary final nursing exam, has been reached. If you were or are a nursing student at Excelsior College and took the college’s Clinical Performance in Nursing Examination, failed it and had to pay to retake it and failed it again from Feb. 19, 2011 to March 5, 2015, you may qualify for benefits from this class action settlement.

Excelsior College was hit by class action lawsuits from 17 different students from 11 different states in February 2014. Students accessed the program’s curriculum online or through a set of CD-ROMs. Throughout the process, the students took several exams, finished 21 of 31 required credits and then took a clinical assessment test called the Clinical Performance in Nursing Examination.

However, the students who filed the class action lawsuits against the college claim that the coursework did not prepare them for the exam, for which they had to pay $2,225 each time they took the test.

Excelsior College allegedly does not graduate students that are prepared to be nurses. The state of California has recently decided not to allow Excelsior students to apply for registered nurse licenses, and 14 different states want students who have passed the Excelsior exam to complete hundreds of clinical hours before they are allowed to apply for licenses.

Under the terms of the proposed class action settlement agreement, Excelsior will pay Class Members $200 for each CPNE failure from Feb. 19, 2011 through March 5, 2015. Each Class Representative will also receive $2,500 for the time, effort, and resources they have put into representing the Settlement Class, subject to final approval by the Court.

Excelsior College denies the allegations but agreed to settle the class action lawsuit to avoid the cost and risk of trial. The Excelsior College class action settlement was preliminarily approved by a New York federal judge on March 5.

Who’s Eligible

Class Members include all current and former students of Excelsior College’s Associate Degree in Nursing distance-learning program who took the Clinical Performance in Nursing Exam (CPNE) at any time, failed the CPNE, and then paid for and took the CPNE on another occasion from Feb. 19, 2011 to March 5, 2015, and did not pass the CPNE on at least one more occasion during that time period.

Potential Award

$200 for each CPNE failure during the period Feb. 19, 2011 through March 5, 2015.

Proof of Purchase

Class Members must submit a claim form with documentation showing each date the CPNE was taken.

Claim Form Deadline

06/14/2015

Case Name

Caroline Castellaw, et al. v. Excelsior College, Case No. 1:14-cv-01048-JBW-RLM, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York

Final Hearing

07/15/2015

Settlement Website
Claims Administrator

Hamlin & Burton Liability Management, Inc.
615 Crescent Executive Court
Suite 212
Lake Mary, Florida 32746
Email: excelsiorclassaction@hamlinandburton.com
Telephone: (321) 972-0121
Fax: (321) 972-0122

Class Counsel

THE HERMINA LAW GROUP

Defense Counsel

KAUFMAN BORGEEST & RYAN LLP

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4 thoughts onExcelsior College Nursing Program Class Action Settlement

  1. Sheryl Trogdon, LVN says:

    I am just reading about this suit. I took CPNE 3 times during 2014 – 2015. I would like some reimbursement. I don’t however think it right or even decent that students are given only $200 and the lawyer a whopping $2500. The settlement should have been negotiated with the students.

  2. Cappy says:

    They ripped off so many students but remember, what goes around comes around. Eventually, we get back what we give in this life and then some. Individually, each one of them that participated in this deceit, stealing and the emotional torture will get theirs — you have to let God take care of these people, and move on. If we seek revenge, he won’t so let the Big Man above deal with them and move forward.

  3. Samantha says:

    This community failed we’re is justices

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