In New York, the scandalous ASA College, which was run by a Russian-speaking immigrant, was closed

Middle States Commission on Higher Education revoked accreditation ASA College in New York aimed at immigrant students. The establishment has faced a slew of legal challenges over the past few years, including allegations of fraud and sexual harassment against its management and employees. About the closure of the college, founded by an immigrant from Russia Alex Shchegol, told the publication Documented.

The decision of the Middle States Commission dated November 11 states that ASA College, whose campuses are located in Brooklyn and Manhattan, failed to provide students with a quality education, failed to pay salaries to employees on time, and also failed to prove its ability to fulfill its obligations.

ASA College's accreditation will officially expire on March 1, 2023. After that, the college will have no access to federal funding, and its license to operate in New York State will be revoked. Accreditation may be withdrawn even earlier if the college does not submit a report to the Commission by December 9 proving that the institution has notified staff, faculty, current and future students of the revocation of accreditation. In addition, up-to-date information on the status of accreditation should appear on the web site.college website.

ASA College has the right to appeal the decision of the Higher Education Commission.

At the moment, the college website indicates that it is accredited. At the same time, site visitors are greeted with a pop-up window with information that the institution does not accept new applications from applicants.

false advertising

In October, the Department of Consumer Protection (DCWP) discovered that ASA College was lying in its commercial. The advertisement stated that the college would help low-income immigrant students stay in the US, as well as provide them with $4000 to $8000 worth of "gifts" upon graduation. The college was forced to pay $112 in civil penalties.

Jessica Ranucci, special litigation coordinator at New York Legal Assistance Group, says they have been contacted by more than ten ASA College students over the past few years. They needed help with their student loan debt from college. Many of them are international students who were deceived by ASA College's dishonest advertising.

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According to Ranucci, ASA College's marketing strategy is clearly aimed at defrauding vulnerable students arriving in the US from other countries. The college itself profited from this, because students paid for their education, having previously taken out a loan or received assistance from a federal or local loan program.

"ASA College often uses misleading or outright false claims to entice students to enroll," Ranucci said. - Only a small part of those who entered are graduating from this institution. But even people who graduate from this college end up earning the minimum wage. It's a commercial company and the federal money was flowing into their pockets."

Dictatorship of Alex Shchegol

The former ASA leader spoke about internal conflicts in the college. According to Migen Rockenbach, former director of digital marketing at ASA College, owner and former president of the college, Alex Slick, secretly controlled the day-to-day operations of the institution despite his resignation due to a sexual harassment scandal.

The dandy was fired in 2019 after at least 10 women accused him of sexual harassment and rape. Then, in 2021, the Goldfinch briefly regained control of the college and fired the entire board of directors, but resigned again in January 2022.

Rockenbach claims that while Goldfinch did not hold an official position at ASA College, he continued to influence marketing and other aspects of the college's operations. Despite problems and fines due to deceptive advertising, according to Rockenbach, the Goldfinch wanted to re-run ads that the DCWP deemed illegal.

“He wanted me to post this ad on Facebook while the investigation was ongoing, but I refused,” she said. “He didn’t understand what the problem was.”

Payroll debts

Rockenbach also claimed that the college constantly delayed her salary. This statement was one of the many reasons that prompted the Higher Education Commission in October 2022 to require ASA College to report on its work. This was the last opportunity for the college to prove that it meets the requirements for accreditation of educational institutions in the United States. ASA College was unable to do so and the accreditation was withdrawn.