Four-D College Students Arrive To School Only To Learn Building Is Closed Permanently
COLTON (CBSLA.com) — Stunned students at a Southland college were ready for class Monday but instead were greeted by a padlocked door and a note staying the building was permanently closed.
"We were all committed to them and they weren't committed to us," said Seneva Jenkins, a student, standing outside of Four-D College in Colton.
The school has a second location in Victorville.
"My classmate is a veteran. He's been here three months. He was so excited. He's got a child on the way. What's he gonna do?" asked Jenkins.
"I wish someone was here to answer questions and tell us what to do, or how to get our stuff, so we could move on," said Angelina Amadi, another student.
One of the school's admissions counselors says she too was left in the dark.
"I'm sticking around, maybe it's not my place, but I'm sticking around because I have students starting," said Teresa Lara, an admissions counselor.
All told 600 students will be displaced.
The school, which offers classes in nursing and other related vocations, refused to comment to CBS2.
A PR agency handling their calls referred the news station to a newspaper article where Four-D College's founder said the Department of Education was to blame for the shutdown, saying the department changed their reimbursement system.
A big concern for students is their financial status, CBS2's Tom Wait reports. The letter posted on the door does not indicate whether students will get a refund, nor whether any credits will transfer.
"We don't know if we are going to get our money back. We invested quite a bit, thousands of dollars right now, you know," said Yosselyn Jacobo, another student.
Officials with the state's Consumer Watchdog agency are scheduling a visit with students for later this week to help them understand their options.
CBS2 contacted the Department of Education for comment, as well as the state office that handles school accreditation, and are awaiting responses from both agencies.
