Dartmouth, Northwestern, Rice, Vanderbilt settle financial aid lawsuits

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CNN
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Four more private universities have agreed to settle lawsuits alleging they violated antitrust laws in determining the amount of financial aid to admitted students, according to court documents filed Friday.

Dartmouth College, Rice University, Vanderbilt University and Northwestern University face a 2022 class action lawsuit alleging the schools colluded over the amount of scholarships awarded to students while favoring applicants from wealthy families. The company agreed to pay a total of $166 million to settle the lawsuit. The settlement comes after Yale University, Columbia University, Duke University, Brown University and Emory University agreed last month to pay a total of $104.5 million to resolve their portions of the lawsuit. In 2022, the University of Chicago agreed to settle the case for $13.5 million.

The agreement is pending preliminary approval by a federal judge. If approved, the total settlement in this case would be $284 million.

U.S. antitrust laws allow higher education institutions to work together to come up with financial aid for applicants, so long as they do not consider a student’s ability to pay tuition when considering whether to accept admission. This is a practice known as “need-blind” admissions. .

But lawyers for the eight former students who filed the lawsuit say 17 of the nation’s top universities either failed to adhere to required blind admissions or colluded with such schools to set up scholarships. They argue that this has reduced price competition among schools. That includes disadvantaged students who need financial assistance, according to court documents.

CNN has reached out to the four schools for comment.

“We are committed to removing financial barriers for our students,” a spokesperson for Northwestern University said in a statement. “The university has not committed any wrongdoing and the plaintiffs’ claims are baseless. I will insist.” “However, the university is pursuing this lawsuit without admitting liability so it can put this issue behind it and focus on Northwestern’s global reputation, excellent teaching, innovative research, and the personal and intellectual growth of its students.” We have agreed to resolve the issue.”

A spokesperson for Dartmouth said the school “has a long history of making education affordable for generations of students and their families,” adding that the school has received 1000 students since 2014. He added that more than $1 billion has been spent on financial aid. The younger classes attend Dartmouth without the responsibility of paying for tuition, housing, food, and many other expenses, and more than half of the class receives some form of financial aid. Dartmouth College is unwavering in its commitment to providing financial aid based solely on a student’s individual needs. ”

A Vanderbilt University spokesperson told CNN in a statement: It is one of the best undergraduate education in the world with its social, cultural and economic background. ”

Rice University did not respond to CNN’s request for comment.

“These 10 settlements shine a spotlight on the remaining seven elite universities that have yet to take the right actions to correct their overcharging of graduates and students from working-class and middle-class backgrounds.” said Robert Gilbert, one of the attorneys. On behalf of former students.

This increased pressure is reflected in the individual amounts set by each school. Settlement costs have steadily increased since the Chicago settlement was reached in September. The university, which reached an agreement last month, will pay between $18.5 million and $24 million. Meanwhile, Dartmouth, Rice, Vanderbilt, and Northwestern’s settlements ranged from $33.75 million to $55 million each.

The remaining seven universities that have not settled include the University of Pennsylvania; with University of Notre Dame, Georgetown, Cornell University, Johns Hopkins University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, California Institute of Technology.