Open letter from GCU to Department of Education secretary
October 24, 2023
Attn: Secretary Miguel Cardona
400 Maryland Ave, SW
Washington, DC 20202
Dear Mr. Secretary,
As promised, our outside legal counsel at Grand Canyon University is putting together a proposed resolution to send to the U.S. Department of Education this week regarding our ongoing disputes. To that effort, we have engaged numerous leaders in Arizona to make them aware of the situation and seek their guidance and advice.
The consensus from these meetings has been twofold: 1) They are incredulous that, given the nature of the Department’s claims and all of the positive contributions GCU is making in higher education, that a monetary fine of any amount is being considered. 2) There has to be a way for you and I to sit down and discuss these matters in a rational and productive way, especially given our shared visions on the major challenges facing higher education.
That second point will be part of our proposed resolution. In fact, I would welcome the opportunity to meet with you even before that proposal is delivered. The views you expressed in this article in the Chronicle of Higher Education as it relates to college rankings and the issues facing higher education, particularly as it relates to equity and accessible pathways for a variety of learners, are the same things we have been saying at Grand Canyon University for the past 15 years. Consider:
