Months after the closure of Stone Academy, a for-profit healthcare college in West Haven, Conn., former nursing students who were unable to finish their education are coming forward, suing the school for $10.35 million, Law360 reported Sept. 12.
Stone Academy shut down in February after failing to address issues including "unqualified faculty, invalid student clinical experiences and recording attendance," a Feb. 14 press release from the Connecticut Department of Public Health stated.
The students' lawsuit was initially filed back in May — prior to a state report into the school which, on top of the cited compliance issues, found 76 percent of student credit hours to be invalid.
Some of the students testified in court Sept. 12 in favor of slamming Stone Academy with a more than $10 million suit, describing how the school's failure to address issues and subsequent closure upended career plans and was completely "devastating," Law360 reported.
The students' complaint spans 36 pages and claims that the institution continued to market itself as a place for professional healthcare training even though its leadership team was reportedly aware that 1 in 5 faculty were unqualified, according to court documents.
While the lawsuit continues to play out in state court, affected students now officially have an alternative to completing their education. The Connecticut Office of Higher Education stated in an Aug. 31 news release that 138 students will be able to continue through a teach-out program administered by the Griffin Hospital School of Allied Health Careers in Derby, Conn.
To qualify for the 10-month teach-out program, students "must have completed a minimum of 40% of their practical nursing program at the former Stone Academy as determined by the transcript audit" and must also pass the HESI Admission Assessment Exam, according to the release.
"Our goal was and has always been to provide displaced students with a path forward," OHE Executive Director Timothy Larson stated in the release. "While other former Stone students have started over or transferred to other programs to complete their training, this latest path allows for students who are closer to graduation to complete their training and prepare to sit for the NCLEX. I'm grateful for the partnership with Griffin Hospital and for the state's remaining practical nursing programs for stepping up to the plate to offer a path forward for many of these students."