Commission to Vote on Purdue-Kaplan Acquisition
Purdue President Mitch Daniels says he believes the acquisition of Kaplan University will also benefit Purdue financially.
Subscriber Benefit
As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowPurdue University’s proposed acquisition of Kaplan University announced nearly a year ago could be nearing completion. The Higher Learning Commission will Thursday make its final decision to approve the deal, though the Journal & Courier reports it may take up to two weeks for the ruling to be made public.
The acquisition has already received approval from the Indiana Commission for Higher Education and the U.S. Department of Education. If approved by the HLC, Purdue will move forward with its new, online university, known as Purdue University Global.
The vote by the Higher Learning Commission will not be open to the public and will be one of several accreditation renewals considered by the commission that day, according to the publication.
When Purdue’s acquisition of Kaplan was announced in April 2017, President Mitch Daniels said the move was part of an effort to tap into online education, of which the university up to this point "has been basically a spectator." He said the decision to acquire Kaplan was based on the fact that Purdue was "very ill-equipped to build the necessary capabilities ourselves."
Last month, the Purdue Board of Trustees approved the Purdue University Global name, which will replace the temporary Purdue NewU moniker that had served as a placeholder.
If the school receives the HLC approval, Purdue Global will be led by Kaplan University President Betty Vandenbosch and Kaplan’s current students and employees will transition to the new school.