Grand Canyon University to revert to nonprofit status

[clep3705]

https://news.gcu.edu/2018/03/hlc-approve...-proposal/

It's not yet done, but it has been approved. Careful reading reveals:

"As part of the transition, GCE will sell certain academic-related assets to a non-profit entity that will carry the Grand Canyon University name. Following the sale, GCE will operate as a third-party provider of educational and related services to GCU and potentially, in the future, to other universities. The structure is similar to that at hundreds of non-profit universities in the country that outsource services to third-party providers."

Moving away from GCE and Grand Canyon to the generic process of non-profit universities in general outsourcing to third-party providers. It is increasingly common for a brick and mortar university to outsource its online education to a third-party. When this happens, you're buying the name of the brick and mortar but you are dealing with a for-profit entity that runs the online program and recruits faculty. Is that what you want? Obviously your experience will vary by third-party company.

This trend toward outsourcing is happening without the general public really realizing it. This trend is blurring the distinction between State University and schools such as University of Phoenix and DeVry.

[dfrecore]

This may be a dumb question - but how would you know, if you enroll in a school but take online courses, whether they were being run by the school or a 3rd party? That seems confusing to me. Or maybe that's the point?

[clep3705]

This may be a dumb question - but how would you know, if you enroll in a school but take online courses, whether they were being run by the school or a 3rd party?  That seems confusing to me.  Or maybe that's the point?

Two indications quickly come to mind about the third parties who give this type of education a bad reputation:

1. After you provide your email and phone number as someone who might be interested in possibly attending someday, sales people, oops, I mean enrollment counselors, hound you endlessly.

2. Once you enroll, you wonder why it takes so long to get your discussion posts graded by the contract, temporary, one step removed from adjunct instructor who is making $13-15/hour.