State higher-ed office hiring consumer protection advocate

The state Office of Higher Education is hiring its first consumer protection advocate to monitor college recruitment and advertising practices.

The new hire will work with George Roedler, who heads up the registration and licensing section and mediates complaints that students have with schools.

Commissioner Larry Pogemiller says the advocate will identify misleading practices and investigate student complaints.

The position is being added as for-profit colleges in particular face increased national and state scrutiny.

Pogemiller says the person will monitor all higher ed institutions - public, private and for-profit.

The hire appears to signal a change of opinion at the office.

When I interviewed Pogemiller last year, he told me this about the state's lack of oversight:

"When I first came over in this job six months ago, I was kind of surprised ... It's really just kind of a registration system. I actually thought it was more regulated than it was."

The office, he explained, didn't have the resources to launch full investigations.

At the time, I wrote:

Pogemiller is hesitant to seek additional funding. He said the schools may not be sufficiently plagued with problems to warrant such investigations.

Instead, Pogemiller said, it might be wiser to spend state money on a higher priority — such as offering more financial aid to students.

"You have to balance at what level that abuse deserve[s] an allocation of resources," he said.

But the commissioner may have changed his mind following some lawsuits as well as inquiries and action by the state attorney general. On Friday Pogemiller said:

"Historically, the office has been: 'We answer complaints when they come to us.' And I think that it's probably wise to just become a little more proactive. ... Our intent here is to become more proactive and aggressive in protecting the students and ensuring that they have the best result for the investment they're making."

He said he has received almost 100 applications, and hopes to choose one this month.

Pogemiller said he would consider hiring someone who had previously worked for a for-profit college, as Roedler had.

Here's the posting for the position:

STATE PROG ADMIN PRIN

$ 23.30-$ 34.34 hourly, $ 48,650-$ 71,702 annually

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