Lawmakers threaten legal action over UI’s potential Phoenix affiliation

Lawmakers are threatening to pursue legal action in order to postpone the University of Idaho’s affiliation with the University of Phoenix.

The controversial acquisition has been held at bay several times since its announcement early last year. The acquisition of the online education giant would be funneled through a UI-affiliated non-profit Four Three Education Inc. at a $685 million price tag. State Attorney General Raul Labrador filed a lawsuit, that was eventually dismissed at the end of January, saying the State Board of Education violated several open meetings laws. Labrador filed an appeal to the Idaho Supreme Court on Feb. 16, according to Idaho Education News. 

However, with the dismissal, UI thought they had cleared all the legal hurdles in its path, looking to secure the deal in April, said Jodi Walker, UI’s Executive Director of Communications in an interview two weeks ago. But more legal battles are starting to arise.  

Legislators in Boise revealed a resolution on Feb. 15 that threatens a lawsuit opposing the acquisition. The resolution’s two co-sponsors, Rep. Brent Crane, R-Nampa, and Rep. John Gannon, D-Boise emphasized in the resolution that legislators don’t directly oppose the deal, but they do object to how the deal was pursued, saying too many vital people were left in the dark. 

“Process matters to me,” said Rep. Brent Crane, R-Nampa in a Feb. 15 Idaho Education News article. “We were not dealt into this process at all.” 

Rep. Gannon provided a statement to the Argonaut in an email saying: 

“Four of my kids and step kids who graduated or attended the University of Idaho have good jobs and careers and two are avid Vandal boosters. I want to be sure that students continue to receive a quality education and that the degree continues to have value and I am not comfortable that this affiliation will do that.” 

“Bigger is not necessarily better, and I note that at the State Board meeting last May it was said the University of Phoenix has only 600 students in Idaho out of 80,000 nationally, I am told. The College of Idaho is very small, but its graduates do very well.  I would like the State Board, sitting as University of Idaho Board of Regents, to reconsider its quick decision, and put all of the information on the table. There should be a public hearing and discussion. I am disappointed that the media has to pay for documents related to the transaction and, even then, might not get all of the data.” 

“I am not a fan of lawsuits, and I will let others speak to that except to say it is unusual for Idaho Government to acquire a private company. We had extensive public involvement, review and debate when the State purchased the Hewlett Packard campus, and I ended up voting for it. That is how this half billion-dollar deal should happen.” 

The House State Affairs Committee unanimously voted to introduce the resolution, according to Idaho Education News, meaning there will be a public hearing in committee. The resolution asks the State Board of Education to reconsider its supporting vote of the UI and University of Phoenix affiliation.  

At the end of the resolution, Boise lawmakers say they will pursue appropriate legal action if a reconsideration is not authorized.  

Walker said the looming lawsuit boils down to miscommunication and misunderstanding of the deal. 

“We are currently working with the legislature to work through their understanding of the deal,” Walker said in an interview Monday. 

Walker said she couldn’t “speak to the timeline” of the deal’s closure or if both Labrador’s appeal and the resolution would alter the April goal. 

Joanna Hayes can be reached at [email protected]