PHEAA moves up visit to technical college, will conduct audit over 3 days

The Pennsylvania Higher Education Association (PHEAA), an agency that provides state grants to students and services federal student loans, is making a last-minute visit to Pittsburgh Technical College to conduct an audit.

It’s the latest in a series of troubles for the college, from an independent investigation into the school’s President and CEO, to a probe by the State Attorney General’s Office.

The PHEAA gave PTC notice at 1:45 pm on Monday that by 9 a.m. Tuesday, they’d need private space and a door that locked for the next three days to conduct an audit of 100% of student records for PA State Grant and Special Programs from 2022-2024.

The agency, which is just one of four approved by the U.S. Department of Education to service federal student loans, was supposed to visit June 10. That was for a follow-up program review; however, top leadership was told because of information received and recent news reports, an audit would be done instead.

The PR firm that handles inquiries for PTC tells 11 Investigates “this is a standard audit that was originally scheduled for June 10.”

PTC student, Bryce Bladen says he didn’t know anything about the audit.

“We’re not hearing anything from the administration, leadership at the school,” Bladen said. “It did come as a surprise. I learned it from the news. That says to me that the school is in trouble. The school has been in trouble, we know this.”

This comes less than a week after PTC’s accrediting agency, the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), visited campus and held a meeting for students. Bladen says he was kicked out. He believes the administration is trying to silence him.

>>> Accreditor to visit Pittsburgh Technical College on Thursday

“I actually got pulled out in front of MSCHE by staff and administration,” Bladen said. “I then called MSCHE and asked if I could go back in and they let me go back in. That’s a really, really, bad look.”

Sources tell 11 Investigates that a preliminary, oral report shows PTC does not appear to meet the standard across several areas and that the college will run out of cash by or around the end of June. That is not an official report, it still needs to be reviewed by the commission’s committee along with PTC’s response before any decision is made.

PTC added “the content of the meeting was to remain private and confidential,” and said they “will not respond to questions about the report until it is official.”

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