Apollo’s marketing eyed again by feds as improper

• The University of Phoenix is again facing a federal probe of its marketing efforts
• The company has paid tens of millions to settle prior matters over recruiting or marketing

Federal regulators have opened a probe of the University of Phoenix to determine whether its marketing efforts have been unfair or deceptive, its parent company announced today.

The inquiry by the Federal Trade Commission comes weeks after the school was given a clean bill of health by its accrediting agency and as the Apollo Education Group braces for continued enrollment losses at its flagship school.

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Apollo acknowledged the FTC is investigating whether people there “have engaged or are engaging in deceptive or unfair acts or practices in or affecting commerce in the advertising, marketing, or sale of secondary or postsecondary educational products or services or educational accreditation products or services.”

The probe covers a “broad spectrum of the business and practices of its wholly-owned subsidiary, University of Phoenix, Inc., including in respect of marketing, recruiting, enrollment, financial aid, tuition and fees, academic programs, academic advising, student retention, billing and debt collection, complaints, accreditation, training, military recruitment, and other compliance matters, for the time period of January 1, 2011 to the present,” Apollo said in its filing.

The company pledged to cooperate fully. "Apollo is evaluating the Demand and intends to cooperate fully with the FTC," the company filing said.

RELATED: Apollo sees its reach narrowing, more enrollment losses

MORE: University of Phoenix parent lays off 600 workers

A spokesman declined further comment to The Republic.

The latest scrutiny follows reports that the university had aggressively tapped military aid in addition to traditional taxpayer-backed student loans. The Center for Investigative Reporting found that the University of Phoenix in San Diego had collected more in GI Bill funds than any school in the country since 2009.

Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., welcomed the FTC’s oversight and noted that the Pentagon had opened a probe of its own.

“I wish I could say I am surprised by the news that the FTC is investigating the University of Phoenix for unfair and deceptive practices, but these allegations are all too familiar when it comes to the for-profit college industry,” he said in a statement.

“Thanks to a recent story by the Center for Investigative Reporting, we now know about the University of Phoenix’s thinly-veiled, dubious recruitment tactics on military bases in order to cash in on a federal funding loophole that allows the company to receive an unlimited amount of federal military and veteran education funding.”

Apollo and the university have faced complaints stretching back at least a decade over its recruiting and marketing practices. Those probes led to fines and settlements that cost millions.

This is believed to be the first investigation by the FTC against the company.

The company’s stock fell steeply in early trading today but partly recovered later. Apollo finished the day down 23 cents a share at $13.15, after dipping below $13.

The stock has rebounded slightly in recent weeks from a 52-week low near $12 a share set after its last earnings report in late June. At that time, the company reported it was laying off 600 workers amid enrollment declines that Apollo executives expect to continue for the next year.

In 2009, the company agreed to a $78 million settlement with employees who filed suit claiming improper recruiter-pay practices. That was on top of a nearly $10 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Education from 2004.

In April 2014, Apollo noted a request for documents in an Education Department probe over marketing and recruiting efforts over issues that date to 2007.