FTC Announces Refund Program for Stratford Career Institute Students

The Federal Trade Commission has announced that Stratford Career Institute agreed to settle a lawsuit over allegations it misled consumers about its high school program.

As part of this FTC settlement, Stratford will pay $250,000 to provide partial refunds to graduates and current students who enrolled in the high school program after Jan. 1, 2011.

The FTC filed a lawsuit against Stratford nearly a year ago, claiming Stratford engaged in misleading advertising of its high school program.

According to the FTC, Stratford’s advertising misled consumers into thinking a diploma from its high school program would be as effective as a traditional high school diploma at helping them further their education and get a job upon graduation.

Stratford allegedly advertised its high school equivalency program through online ads, letters, brochures, television commercials and in magazines. These advertisements reportedly claimed that “it’s never too late to get your diploma.”

Stratford also reportedly purchased online advertising tied to certain search terms, including “official high school diploma,” “high school equivalency diploma,” and “real high school diploma online.”

According to the Stratford lawsuit, students paid as much as $989 for enrollment in the program, which in many cases took more than two years to complete.

Many Stratford students unfortunately discovered that the Stratford diplomas were “useless” and that they could not be used to get accepted into college or get a job. According to the FTC lawsuit, Stratford’s program only requires 18 credits for completion, which is insufficient in many states. Further, many states require credits in courses that were not offered by Stratford.

“Stratford promised that its high school program could help students get better jobs and access higher education,” Jessica Rich, the Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said. “For many students, those promises were false because schools and employers rejected Stratford’s supposed ‘diploma.’”

To be eligible to participate in the Stratford refund program, current students must cancel their enrollment within 30 days of receiving notice from Stratford. This notice will either be contained in an email with the subject line “Your Enrollment in Stratford Career Institute Inc.’s High School Diploma Program” or in a message titled “Important Message About Your Enrollment” which can be found in the message center in Stratford’s eservice online student center.

Graduates of Stratford do not need to take any action at this time in order to be eligible for a refund.

The amount each Stratford student will receive from the Stratford refund program depends on a number of factors, including how much money was lost and how many people apply for refunds.

For more information about the Stratford high school diploma settlement, keep checking ftc.gov/Stratford for the latest updates.

The Stratford Career Institute High School Diploma Lawsuit is Federal Trade Commission v. Stratford Career Institute Inc., Case No. 1:16-cv-00371-JG, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.

UPDATE: January 2018, the FTC announced that persons who signed up for a bogus high school equivalency program will receive a total of $216,000 in refunds.