Connecticut AG sues for-profits

Connecticut attorney general William Tong filed suit Friday against the Stone Academy, a failed for-profit college; the Paier College of Art, another for-profit; and their owner, Joseph Bierbaum.

Tong is simultaneously asking a state court to attach multiple millions of dollars of Stone’s and Bierbaum’s assets during the pendency of this litigation, including Bierbaum’s home. This would prevent the defendants from offloading or shifting resources to evade accountability.

“Stone Academy promised hands-on training from industry leaders, and an education that would position students to become licensed practical nurses in less than two years. These were lies. This is textbook consumer deception—our evidence is unassailable, and we will get justice for Stone’s students,” said Tong.

Tong added, “This was not a victimless scam. Stone students took on thousands of dollars in debt and spent hundreds of hours away from their families and jobs to becomes nurses and improve their lives. Our state desperately needs these trained nurses. Stone’s day of reckoning is here—we’re demanding millions of dollars in penalties and restitution for students.”

Perry Rowthorn, a lawyer for the Stone Academy, told WFSB News that the state’s Office of Higher Education (OHE) forced Stone to close without adequate services available for students. “To date, Stone’s efforts have been focused on helping students, but this lawsuit will require Stone to aggressively seek to hold OHE’s leadership and other state officials accountable for their severe mismanagement of this matter and the harm they continue to inflict on hundreds of students and graduates.”