State audit finds no wrongdoing by GCU after feds announced $37M lawsuit
PHOENIX - Grand Canyon University is celebrating a win in its fight against the federal government.
A state agency audit found there was no misconduct as the school had been accused of misleading students about the cost of a doctoral program and was fined millions of dollars.
The Education Department fined Grand Canyon University on Oct. 31 of last year after an investigation claimed that the university lied to more than 7,500 current and former students about the cost of doctoral programs.
University President Brian Mueller called the fine "ridiculous" back when the report was announced, and questioned whether the school is being targeted because of its faith affiliation.
On March 11, Mueller spoke to FOX 10 about the new state audit and said the school would not be paying the $37 million fine.
"For the department to say what they've said, makes absolutely zero sense," he said.
GCU denies every accusation made by the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Education. The Arizona State Approving Agency of the Department of Veterans Services completed the audit and said it found no wrongdoing by GCU.
"This is the fourth group that has looked at the exact same set of facts and have said their disclosures are clear, they're thorough, they're robust, there are no student complaints, and yet the Department of Education is issuing the largest fine in its history of $37 million," the GCU President said.
The audit was triggered by the recent lawsuit against the school.
The suit alleges that GCU used deceptive marketing tactics to recruit students into its doctoral programs, including misrepresenting the price of those programs.
The school will continue to appeal the fine, and it hired a former solicitor general to be on its outside legal team.
"We've just hired the foremost attorney in the country at trying cases in front of the Supreme Court and it is our hope that this is such an egregious situation that the Supreme Court would hear this," Mueller said.
Related video: GCU announces appeal of feds' $37M fine
Grand Canyon University President Brian Mueller announced at a news conference on Nov. 16 that the school will appeal a $37.7 million fine for allegedly misstating the cost of its programs. The fine was handed down by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Federal Student Aid.