For students of Stone Academy, it’s been a hectic past few months after the school abruptly shut its doors back in February. But on Thursday, a meeting was hosted by the Office of Higher Education and other federal organizations to bring some clarity to the situation.
The big topics highlighted from the audit review were qualifications for professors and finances in the form of reimbursement.
When the school closed, it came to light that there were professors who didn’t hold the proper credentials to teach in nursing.
But as leaders explained in the webinar - in order to teach nursing in the state of Connecticut, one need's a bachelor's and/or masters degree - one of those degrees has to be in nursing and at least three years of experience in the field.
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In regards to financial impact, leader say tuition reimbursement will be offered to all students who were at the academy from Nov 1, 2021 to Feb 28, 2023. Students will be able to apply up to two years after they attended the academy.
Stone Academy Closure
David Slossberg, who is an attorney for multiple students, said, "I have spoken to hundreds of members of this class and the stories are really heartbreaking. You’re talking about folks who were just about to graduate or expecting to graduate within weeks or months and sacrifice so much in money and time juggling family work obligations to get this LPN degree but really to advance their career and they’ve been in limbo."
The Office of Higher Education said more information will continue to come down the pipeline about options for credit and next steps in transfers.
