Earlier this week ITT Technical Institute immediately closed every campus across the country. Filings last year with the Securities and Exchange Commission show that affects nearly 45,000 sites, including two in Oklahoma. – one in Oklahoma City, the other in Tulsa.
This all came about because the for-profit college had to stop enrolling new students who used federal financial aid. The U.S. Department of Education said the company was a risk to both its students and taxpayers, and ordered them to increase their cash reserves by more than $150 million in less than a month. That ultimatum led to Tuesday’s closure.
But in Oklahoma, recruiters and job placement firms don’t seem concerned about the for-profit college closure’s affect on the labor pool, The Journal Record’s Dale Denwalt reports:
Accel Financial Staffing President Meg Salyer said her firm usually works with the state’s public and private universities to recruit graduates. Although ITT Tech offered degrees in accounting and medical administration, Salyer said her pool of applicants doesn’t include those graduates. “I don’t have a strong sense that losing (ITT) would have an impact on the pipeline of strong graduates,” Salyer said.
Kevin Nissen recruits for information technology jobs with Express Employment Professionals, and has talked with several ITT Tech graduates over the years, says The Journal Record’s editor Ted Streuli.
“Right now the IT industry, in Oklahoma anyway, has a really slow labor market, so there aren't a lot of openings,” Streuli said. ‘That's made it tough to recruit from anywhere. So he doesn't see it'll be a big issue for him.”
Dick Wegener who owns Wegener Human Resource Group, criticized ITT and other smaller, private tech schools, saying they promise a lot and deliver little. Companies would rather have employees with previous work experience over tech school training, regardless of what school it’s from.
Lawmakers plan to hold an interim study on these for-profit school closure issues this fall, but it was scheduled it before ITT’s problems reached critical mass, Denwalt writes:
State Rep. Chad Caldwell, R-Enid, scheduled the hearing before issues at ITT Tech reached the breaking point. “We need to make sure our students that have decided to attend these private institutions … are protected, that their investment in their education doesn’t just evaporate with the closure of one of those schools,” Caldwell said Tuesday. He said that some for-profit institutions have shut down the right way and his interim study won’t be a criticism of the industry. “The ones who (shut down) the wrong way give the good ones a bad name,” he said. “My gut feeling is that a majority of them are doing a good job.”
Contractor Conflict
An interim study last year looked at delayed check processing within the roofing industry. Banks have been holding contractors’ checks for processing, which the Oklahoma Roofing Contractors Association says is a problem.
“They say roofers pay a lot upfront for supplies, but they aren't usually reimbursed until mortgage companies inspect a new home site. And that can be months later,” Streuli said. “$20,000 seems to be the magic number for a check – kind of the cutoff. If it's more than that amount, banks tend to hold it for processing rather than passing it along to the vendor right away.”
Credit Union Association president Nate Webb [told The Journal Record’s Brian Brus he’s not sure banks and contractors can work out their differences without legislative intervention:
[State Rep. Lewis] Moore said he doesn’t want to create more legislative oversight if the finance industry can make corrections on its own. [Crossroads Roofing Supply owner Lisa] Curtis said she can appreciate the role of small government, but this time perhaps an extra step is necessary. “Even after you jump through all the hoops with mortgage companies and insurance companies, the checks are still written out to a litany of people who all have to sign off,” she said. “And even after they do that, contractors still don’t get their money for extended periods, weeks at a time. We have people to pay and more supplies to buy. There should be a deadline they have to follow.”
The Business Intelligence Report is a collaborative news project between KGOU and The Journal Record.
As a community-supported news organization, KGOU relies on contributions from readers and listeners to fulfill its mission of public service to Oklahoma and beyond. Donate online, or by contacting our Membership department.
The Journal Record is a multi-faceted media company specializing in business, legislative and legal news. Print and online content is available via subscription.
