A cosmetology and barber school with a campus in the Miramar area is facing closure Wednesday amid accusations of mishandling federal funds, a move that may burden students who have already poured thousands of dollars into their education there.
This week, the Department of Education cut off federal funding for 23 Marinello Schools of Beauty in Nevada and California, directly impacting more than 2,000 students.
Not just that, student Antonio De La Rosa, a San Diego veteran who got his barber license there, told NBC 7 he believes the school's disorganization and unprofessional conduct has resulted in a waste of hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars.
School administrators are accused by the federal government of falsifying financial aid records, by allegedly offering funding to some students with invalid high school diplomas. They're also accused of cheating students out of money by either charging too much or withholding the financial aid they deserve.
The school denies the allegations. The company sent NBC 7 a statement, which says in part:
"The allegations disclosed yesterday for the first time, which are unfounded, were accompanied by an organized and unprecedented press release. Without providing Marinello any time to refute or defend these untrue allegations, the Department chose to cut off funding to our students at 23 schools, none of which have ever been found to have any curriculum or instructional deficiencies by our nationally recognized accreditors or the states in which they operate."
Read the full statement below.
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De La Rosa said he sought his barber license after serving in the Marine Corps between 2002 and 2014. The retired staff sergeant said he was "flabbergasted" at some of the practices at Marinello. He told NBC 7 he saw students get their high school diploma in one day, and courses were priced tens of thousands of dollars above classes at other schools.
De La Rosa, who served two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan, said more than anything, he was shocked by unprofessionalism from school instructors and administrators.
"I deserve my education and they're not giving it to me," he said.
Here is Marinello's complete statement:
“Despite Marinello Schools of Beauty’s long history of compliance with regulatory requirements, the Department of Education has delayed funding to our students for over two months without specifying allegations of wrongdoing or even allowing us to respond. Repeated attempts to get the most basic information from the Department of Education about their potential concerns were rebuffed. We repeatedly informed the Department that its actions could lead to the closure of the schools and it refused to provide any information about its concerns. This complete lack of due process has caused Marinello irreparable harm.
“The allegations disclosed yesterday for the first time, which are unfounded, were accompanied by an organized and unprecedented press release. Without providing Marinello any time to refute or defend these untrue accusations, the Department chose to cut off funding to our students at 23 schools, none of which have ever been found to have any curriculum or instructional deficiencies by our nationally recognized accreditors or the states in which they operate. We intend to appeal this decision and believe we have done nothing wrong and will defend ourselves vigorously. We object strongly to the lack of due process the Department has afforded, which in turn has put our operations at risk. If the Department is convinced of its position then it should have provided us with due process to contest its findings.
“The Department’s unilateral action risks the worst possible consequences for our students, faculty and staff: the disruption of education for approximately 4,300 students and the loss of approximately 800 jobs, all without providing us sufficient opportunity to respond to these unfounded allegations.”
“We have helped tens of thousands of deserving students obtain licensure in professional occupations for more than 110 years, but that may end due to these unprecedented and unfounded actions by the Department of Education.”
