Hussian College closure: Multiple families say school owes them money after abruptly shutting down

CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Danielle Block graduated from Hussian College in January with a degree in business management. When she first enrolled back in 2021, the school encouraged her to complete the FAFSA, and she was awarded a Pell grant.

While she pushed through to graduation, she said she wasn’t impressed with the classes. “The education was very subpar, and three of my classes didn’t have a teacher for over half the time,” Block said.

When she graduated in January, Block had a credit balance of $8,100. Hussian told her to reach out to their accounts receivable team to get the money refunded to her. But Block has sent over 10 emails with no resolution. She last heard from the school on May 12 that her emails have been received and are under review.

Students such as Block have been affected personally as well as financially by the sudden closing of Hussian College, which the school announced on June 12. Multiple families say Hussian still owes them money, and they have received little communication from the school about returned credits.

State officials looking into closure

An email was sent out on June 11 stating that the school cannot continue to operate most of its programs and will not resume classes as originally planned. The Tennessee Higher Education Commission confirmed the school is closing as Hussian itself has not made an announcement. Their website states only that they are not currently enrolling new students.

Block filed a complaint with the Tennessee Higher Education Commission. She said THEC officials agreed that she is due a credit balance from Hussian but THEC doesn’t feel that she will ever see the money since the school is closing.

“I would like to see whoever mismanaged our money to be held responsible,” Block said.

Julie Woodruff, senior compliance counsel of THEC, told Clarksville Now that THEC is communicating with the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Department of Education about this matter and is currently focused on efforts to ensure that the immediate needs of students are met.

Insurance claims for repayment

Hussian College has campuses outside of Clarksville including Murfreesboro; Nashville; Columbus, Ohio; Philadelphia; and Los Angeles.

Kelly Hennessey is a parent living in Florida whose daughter attends Hussian at the Los Angeles campus. Her daughter started at Hussian in 2021 as a freshman. She is now 22 years old and attempting to complete her degree amid the financial struggle she says the school has dealt the family.

After the school shut down, Hennessey submitted a claim for disbursement of funds from an outstanding credit balance of over $10,000 – money she planned to use to pay for her daughter’s rent in L.A., bills, school supplies and more, she said.

PREVIOUSLY: Hussian College shutting down in Clarksville, Nashville, Murfreesboro with little notice to students

Hennessey submitted her claim and received an email from the insurance adjustor that said the company would not be reimbursing the funds, and whoever told her that was “incorrect at best.” Hennessey is one of the only parents who has heard from the insurance company, AXA XL, due to her constant communication with Hussian to send her the information.

Christine Weirsky, communication director for AXA XL North America, confirmed to Clarksville Now that they are handling insurance for Hussian, but they cannot comment on any specific client’s coverage or claims activity.

In the newest series of emails between families and Hussian, scholarshipclaims@hussiancollege.edu sent an email stating that complex insurance claims can take several months to see any award coverage. It went on to say, “One thing that is true is that if you have a credit balance with the institution, you are owed that money, and I deeply regret that Hussian finds itself in a position where it does not have the financial wherewithal to pay you what you are owed. You all deserve better.”

Financial portal shut down

Hennessey also claimed that parents were locked out of their financial portal over a year ago. That portal allowed them to see when their student was charged tuition, applied for a scholarship, applied for a loan and anything financial. “A lot of parents probably don’t know what the school owes them since the portal shut down. I only know because I’ve been keeping very close records of everything,” said Hennessey.

“I wasn’t surprised when the school shut down because I’ve been saying for two and a half years that something was going on there,” Hennessey said.

During those years, a Facebook page was created where parents complained about the school. Hennessey claims an administrator from the school reached out telling them to remove any negative posts or the school would have the page shut down. “We were starting to become silenced; we couldn’t speak about what was happening,” Hennessey said.

Another parent, Pamela Voss, whose daughter attended Hussian College at the L.A. campus, said she applied for the parent-plus loan. Along with loans, she said, her daughter received the highest scholarship that Hussian offers, totaling $25,000.

Over the past two years, Voss has received only one disbursement check, for $4,000, and is currently owed $36,000 from Hussian, she said. Voss sent her claim to disbursementclaims@Hussiancollege.edu and got a response stating, “Your email has been forwarded to the insurance company.”

Voss has yet to hear from the insurance company directly and has not been given the name of the company or the adjustors. “Something needs to be done,” Voss said.

Clarksville Now has attempted to reach both Casciano and Figuli for comment.

One instructor claims that within the four months he’s worked at Hussian, he has been paid only one month. “My outstanding invoices are over $10,000, and they are expecting me to finish my last class.” Hussian is also ignoring the instructors’ requests for payment, the instructor said.

Hussian L.A. students offered another school

Hussian College’s presence in L.A. has now been taken up by American Musical and Dramatic Academy, AMDA, where students are allowed to continue their education. AMDA has a campus in L.A.

“We are not taking over the Hussian school. We are not in any kind of partnership with Hussian. We are providing a teach out for you and your education experience,” said AMDA chief operating officer John Galgano in a Zoom session.

Students who continue their programs with AMDA will be graduating with an AMDA degree. Voss said her daughter will not be continuing her education at the moment.

A petition was created on May 30, labelled “Stop Hussian College from continuing to put students and families in severe financial debt.” The petition can be found on change.org with about 140 signatures and multiple comments detailing complaint about Hussian.

THEC has created a web page, Hussian College – Nashville, Murfreesboro, Clarksville, and Online Instruction, so students can get the most up-to-date information. The website includes information on transcripts, the student portal, federal student loans and Pell grants, veteran services, and tuition guaranty fund.