CTofficialsaddress Stone Academy students, decline to take live questions

Jul. 27—Toward the end of Thursday's hourlong Zoom webinar, attended by more than 150 people, at least 17 students indicated "raised hands" but were told that they would have to instead submit written questions via an online form.

"I see many hands raised. However, we are going to take all those questions written in an email form and not answer those individual questions this morning," Timothy Larson, executive director of the Office of Higher Education, told students.

Stone Academy closed abruptly in February amid pressure from state regulators, leaving more than 800 nursing students short of degree requirements and lacking the transcripts that would allow them to continue their education elsewhere. Subsequent investigations found that the for-profit program maintained illegal staff-to-student ratios, employed under-qualified instructors and held clinical hours in non-approved settings.

The school, which operated campuses in East Hartford, Waterbury and West Haven, now faces a lawsuit from former students and another from Attorney General William Tong, who alleges the program and its owner deceived students and denied them their promised education. Attorneys for Stone Academy have denied or downplayed accusations, while blaming state agencies with rushing the school's closure.

The state has offered former Stone Academy students refunds on invalid credits and, for those who qualify, a teach-out program that would allow them to finish their degrees in another program.

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During the webinar Thursday, officials from the Office of Higher Education, the Department of Health and the U.S. Department of Education explained the audit results and offered instruction on how to apply for refunds or have federal loans discharged or repaid. Representatives from other local nursing schools then pitched their programs as options for ex-Stone students seeking to finish their degrees.

Chris Andresen, from the Department of Public Health, outlined the requirements for becoming a licensed practical nurse, which include both completing an accredited program and passing a licensing exam.

"It's not like we're just making this stuff up as we go along," Andresen said. "This stuff is codified in law, and it's intended to make sure that LPN and RN students, wherever they go to school in Connecticut, are getting the same basic degree of education that they deserve."

The presentation continued with an FAQ segment in which a representative from the Office of Higher Education answered questioned submitted beforehand about refunds, licensing exams, credit transfers and more.

In an email to students before the webinar, a representative from the Office of Higher Education said officials would not answer student-specific questions "in order to protect the privacy of individual student records and transcript information."

Larson finished the presentation by acknowledging the difficulty students have faced and thanking them for attending.

"I believe that this demonstrates the amount of effort and time and concern the State of Connecticut has put into trying to put information out to students so you can make an adult and informed decision on your future career," Larson said. "There's no doubt that the State of Connecticut needs you in this profession."