Clinging To Phoenix, U of Idaho President Spreads Cash, FOMO | Republic Report

University of Idaho president C. Scott Green is still trying to keep alive the dream of his school acquiring the troubled for-profit University of Phoenix, even though the proposed deal has been met with sharp disapproval from state legislators, the state’s attorney general and treasurer, and many others in Idaho.

Idaho Education News reports this week on emails between members of the Idaho State Board of Education, which oversees Green’s school, that discuss Green’s continuing talks with Apollo Global Management, the current owners of the University of Phoenix.

At the same time, Green’s apparent effort to influence the Idaho legislature through a series of campaign contributions seem to have only raised more questions about whether he has any idea what he’s doing.

According to the newly-unearthed email messages, obtained by Idaho Education News through a public records request, Green told a Board of Education member and an aide to Idaho governor Brad Little (R) that one possibility being floated is that Apollo would extend for nine to twelve months the expiring deadline for the deal to be completed, but Idaho would agree to “drop exclusivity,” meaning Apollo would be free to talk with other prospective purchasers,  and perhaps pay a “break-up” fee to Idaho if one of these possible buyers reaches a deal.

Phoenix’s supposed interest in seeing other people, as floated by Green, may be aimed at making Idaho jealous, but based on developments in the year since the Idaho-Phoenix deal was announced, there may not actually be any genuine suitors in the wings.

A subsequent email recounts a May 1 meeting involving Green, representatives of the Board of Education, and Governor Little. According to the message, the meeting participants “agreed we need state policy leaders to signal whether they even want to move forward with the underlying transaction or not. The governor is going to have some informal conversations and follow up with us.”

The University of Phoenix told Idaho Education News, “We are optimistic that we can find a path forward with the University of Idaho and look forward to continuing discussions with leaders in the state.” The University of Idaho said, “We continue to have conversations with the governor and legislators about their interest in continuing to pursue this opportunity for our state.”

Green also confirmed to the Idaho Statesman this week that he still wants the Phoenix deal. “The sellers are still very interested, as are we,” Green told the paper. He also said that Phoenix’s revenues, around $800 million a year, “are probably more compelling than ever.”

But the ball seems to be in Governor Little’s court at this point, and he should be asking whether the deal ever made sense for Idaho.

The University of Phoenix has indeed received billions in taxpayer-funded student grants and loans over decades — a record that might suggest, as Green endlessly does, that it would be a cash cow for the University of Idaho. But Phoenix also has repeatedly faced actions from law enforcement agencies over deceptive and predatory practices. Betting that the school can keep engaging in such abuses without getting shut down, or, alternatively, that the school could keep making money without engaging in those predatory practices, seems awfully risky. There’s also the serious possibility that, having bought Phoenix, Green’s school could be on the hook to pay back federal taxpayers billions in student loan dollars that Phoenix banked by deceiving students.