EDI closing shocks students

Debra D. Bass

Wednesday, Feb. 5, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

Not many 20-year-old high school dropouts, who have first-hand knowledge of the ills associated with teen pregnancy, get a second chance at a life and a career.

Melonie Fernandez feels like she just lost hers.

After months of taking care of an ailing aunt, she decided to return to school and become a medical assistant. She studied to earn a General Equivalency Diploma, took out $6,000 in loans, accepted a $6-an-hour work-study job to occupy 20-30 hours a week and began studying at Education Dynamics Institute.

Though devastated by her aunt's death a few weeks into her studies, Fernandez mustered her strength and returned to the classroom a day later.

"I had been taking care of her, bathing her, changing the tube in her stomach to feed her, and when she died, I really wanted to give up," Fernandez said. "But my family said no, you got to go on, and I did."

Fernandez was counting down the days, with only two weeks left in her program, when EDI closed its doors Friday. The school fought the government and lost its bid to retain the federal grant and loan program at the school.

"I gave it my all and this is what I get in return -- nothing. I was trying to make something of myself for my child and myself, and now it all means nothing," Fernandez said.

She lost her work-study position, won't be able to receive a license without completing another full-length program and may still be obligated to pay back a portion of her loan.

She and about 375 classmates attending various programs at the school are expecting a letter from the school this week explaining what went wrong.

In October, EDI began fighting for a reprieve from the U.S. Department of Education's decision to cut off loans and grants to the school because too many of its students failed to repay them.

About 70 percent of EDI's students relied on government aid, which meant the school relied on that aid to pay the bills. When the government checks stopped last year, the school made a commitment to remain open until it had its day in court.

EDI argued that the government's method of calculating the school's default rate was incorrect, a point government officials conceded. But that didn't change their ruling to cut off funding.

EDI pleaded its case against Education Secretary Richard Riley in front of U.S. District Judge Philip Pro. They asked him to temporarily force the federal government to continue to honor the loans while the case is reviewed.

On Friday, Pro entered his order to deny the challenges and affirm the secretary's right to terminate payments to the school.

The school quietly closed its doors later that day. Most students didn't find out until they returned for classes Monday, only to be greeted by a handwritten sign, "EDI Closed. Call CPE 486-7330."

The Commission on Post-Secondary Education has heard from about 200 students from the school and is attempting to place them in other programs. However, none of those programs can honor the work students have already put in at EDI.

"I think there is some unwritten agenda to take money out of the private sector and put it back into the hands of the public sector," said David Perlman, the administrator for the governor-appointed commission.

He submitted an affidavit on behalf of the school and its parent company, Career Training of Nevada Inc., stating: "EDI is one of the largest private career or vocational training schools in the Las Vegas area. More importantly, EDI is very successful at achieving its mission of providing students with meaningful job skills and employment."

He said that when career schools fail it is usually because they offer inferior services and that is documented by student complaints. But in EDI's circumstance, students couldn't have been happier.

Bob McCart, EDI's executive director, previously maintained that the banks lending funds to its clients were suspect for a high default rate nationwide. He claimed that the "due diligence" banks are required to comply with in order to receive a government-guarantee of payment is lacking.

However, the government believes that a school with high default rates must be producing students who can't get jobs and are therefore incapable of making payments, he said.

James McCay heard about EDI's success rate while he was stationed in Germany completing a stint in the U.S. Army as an air conditioning and heating technician.

"I was told that it was the best school around. Then I got back here and started going around to AC (air-conditioning) shops. When I told them I was planning on taking a class at EDI, they had nothing but raves," McCay said.

Only five days into his program, he was shocked to return to a locked door and an out-of-business sign.

"I was on the G.I. bill, so I wasn't going to give them any problems with payment," McCay, 26, explained.

Now, he's considering another school in town, Quality Air, but he isn't enthusiastic about the switch.

Carl Baker had been attending classes at EDI since October. After speaking with the dean on Thursday, he was convinced that nothing would stop the school from its mission. So were McCay and Fernandez. They were given no indication of the closure.

"I was so mad because I saw my whole future go down the drain," said the 34-year-old husband and father of two.

He injured his back on the job two years ago and has worked for the past year. Instead of taking a buy-out from the State Industrial Insurance System, he opted to take up electronics at EDI. Now, his only regret is that he didn't enter the program sooner and finish before the school's closure.