Embattled Eastern Gateway Community College searched by Ohio auditors, Secret Service
The Ohio auditor's office executed search warrants Thursday at Eastern Gateway Community College in Steubenville, months after the U.S. Department of Education ordered the college to halt enrollment over a possible violation of federal law over how it pays for students to attend classes.
State auditors were joined by U.S. Secret Service agents, Ohio State Highway Patrol's computer crimes unit, Jefferson County Sheriff's office and others, according to a statement from the office of Ohio Auditor Keith Faber.
In a video statement, Faber said they are investigating matters of financial irregularities at the college.
The college has been on the financial ropes. In December, Eastern Gateway asked state lawmakers for a $12 million advance on state funds to help it meet payroll.
Last year, the college ended a popular program that provided free college for 20,000 students.
What is the free college program?
In 2015, Eastern Gateway launched the Union Free College Benefit Program, which allowed American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union members and their families to earn a college degree “with no out-of-pocket cost for tuition, fees, or books after any federal or employer grants are applied,” according to the college.
That program drew ire from state lawmakers, however, over Ohio taxpayers footing the bill for thousands of out-of-state students.
In July 2022, the college announced that the U.S. Department of Education raised concerns about the program during a federal financial aid program review. The department alleged that Eastern Gateway was only charging Pell Grant-eligible students for the cost of their grants and using excess Pell Grant funds to cover other students.
The Education Department sent Eastern Gateway a cease-and-desist letter that year to stop new students from enrolling in the free college program, but a federal court ordered an injunction that allowed students to enroll in spring and summer semester classes in 2023.
But Eastern Gateway officially shuttered the program to new students in July, in order to “move forward with productive settlement agreements with the Department of Education," the college said in a statement.
"Through these in-depth discussions, we have jointly come to an agreement we believe will position Eastern Gateway Community College to continue our mission to put our students first and offer the lowest cost option for you to continue on your path to a higher education," Eastern Gateway President Michael Geoghegan said in a statement at the time.
Eastern Gateway, established in 1968, serves students from Columbiana, Jefferson, Mahoning and Trumbull counties and has campuses in Steubenville and Youngstown.
Laura Bischoff is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Eastern Gateway Community College searched by Ohio state auditors
