BALTIMORE — Stratford University students were in the middle of their studies when they learned classes were canceled indefinitely. The Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) is now working on refunds and to place students elsewhere.
“It’s very weird, it’s creepy,” said De'Von Hamlett, a former Stratford University student.
Hamlett had fond memories at the Baltimore campus. In 2016, he enrolled to receive his advanced culinary arts degree then returned in 2020 for a bachelor’s degree in hospitality management, which he finished in March.
“Originally, graduation was slated to happen in August, then they pushed it back to September then November,” Hamlett recalled.
Then he saw the news that Stratford University was closing for good.
“I found out on the internet with everybody else,” said Hamlett. “I was distraught, extremely frustrated.”
According to MHEC, 58 students were enrolled at the Baltimore campus when it closed. Stratford also shut down two campuses in Virginia. There’s a message on the for-profit school’s website about the sudden closure, but Hamlett said it’s still unclear what comes next.
“If I don’t receive my degree, what am I going to do about the loans I’ve taken out in the last two years? Is that going to be dismissed, a refund given to me? I know one thing I can’t get back is the time but I’m just kind of looking to move forward at this point,” said Hamlett.
“We expected them to close in March, but we were unaware in September that they were planning to close the entire university so we kind of found out when everyone else found out,” said Dr. Emily Dow, Assistant superintendent of Academic Affairs for the Maryland Higher Education Commission.
MHEC oversees and regulates post-secondary institutions in the state and they’ve stepped in to assist students now stuck in limbo.
“We focus on finding programs that they can go and transfer their Stratford credits at and continue and finish out their original program of study. Or if students don’t want to do that, they can seek a refund through our agency. If they have federal loans they can certainly go to the U.S. Department of Education or if they have private loans we encourage them to go to their loan service provider to see if there’s any options for that” Dow said.
Stratford shut down after the U.S. Department of Education decertified ACICS, their institutional accreditor. These schools were given 18 months to find a replacement accreditor but were prohibited from accepting new students during that time.
In a letter to students on its website, Stratford University President Dr. Richard R. Shurtz wrote:
“On August 25, 2022, the Department communicated the conditions that must be met during the 18 months. We were barred from enrolling new students. We were only authorized to teach those who had already started. In addition, we were required to post a large Letter of Credit.
Sadly, these conditions made it impossible to continue in operation. Without new students, we would not have the sufficient cash flow to operate. We will be forced to close operations at the end of this term at all locations.
We worked hard to save the school, leaving no stone unturned. We almost had an investor from Silicon Valley, but the actions of the Department made the deal impossible.”
“It’s like somebody pulled the rug up from underneath us because I put in a lot of time working, having my catering company then having my job then having to come home and do assignments. It was tough,” said Hamlett.
Dow said school closures are uncommon, but we've seen more since the pandemic including Robert Paul Academy last year and atleast 10 other Maryland collegiate and private career schools in the past four years.
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To avoid this, Dow recommends some research.
“Students can look at things like accreditation that’s often a big impetus for schools to close as well as recognition from licensing boards,” Dow said.
Hamlett is sad to see the school close. It helped him break into the industry, and he hopes there will be opportunities for others to do the same.
“I will say, as an African American, there’s not too many of us in the field so this place gave me an opportunity. It opened a lot of doors for me,” said Hamlett. “Hopefully, there will be another place like this for people like me.”
MHEC is prioritizing placing students who want to complete their degrees. It’s working with five potential teach-out institutions with two proposed teach-out agreements currently under review. Additional teach-out agreements are expected shortly. Students will be notified when the teach-outs are finalized.
Refunds are expected to take longer but MHEC plans to send out information by the end of the year.
Stratford students can receive the latest updates from MHEC by filling out the form on their website.
MHEC also offers many state scholarships and grants. Click here for details on how to apply.
