PROVIDENCE, R.i. -- The Senate has approved legislation sponsored by Sen. Elizabeth A. Crowley (D-Central Falls) requiring private postsecondary schools to provide refunds and record transfers for students.
The bill would also require that the schools give students 30 days' notice in the event the schools close.
The legislation is in response to the abrupt closure of the Sawyer School in December, which left about 300 students without access to their prepaid tuition money or academic records. The private, for-profit postsecondary school had two locations in Rhode Island, in Pawtucket and Providence.
"Higher education is a significant investment of both time and money for students, and we cannot have it so that students risk losing everything by pursuing a degree or certificate," said Crowley.