National American University (NAU) is a private for-profit online university with locations at Ellsworth Air Force Base and Naval Submarine Base King's Bay. It is owned by National American University Holdings, Inc. (NAUH). In 2018, NAU acquired the assets of Henley-Putnam University and now offers strategic security programs. Most of NAU's academic programs are on the 11-week

quarter system An academic quarter refers to the division of an academic year into four parts. Historical context The modern academic quarter calendar can be traced to the historic English law court / legal training pupillage four term system: * Hilary: Ja ...

and have monthly starts. The school is accredited by the

Higher Learning Commission The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa ...

History

Originally called "National School of Business" in 1941, National American University changed its name to National College of Business, then National College, before adopting its current name. In 1996 National American University began developing online courses and degree options for students across the United States and internationally. Online programs include associate's, bachelor's and master's degrees in accounting, business, information technology, strategic security, and health care. Students are also provided access to classes and extensive campus resources including learning resource center services, tutoring services, counseling services, and computer support through a student portal. In 2012, 53% of NAU's students were studying online, with an additional 17% taking some classes online. In 2018, 77% of NAU's students were studying online, with an additional 12% taking some classes online.

Financial issues and retrenchment

In 2018, NAUH mortgaged real property to secure an $8 million loan which was subsequently paid in full. Campus closings were planned as NAU transitioned to an online university and the NAUH agreed to voluntarily delist from the NASDAQ. The following year, NAUH announced that "the Company had $0.5 million of unrestricted cash and cash equivalents and a working capital deficiency of $8.7 million. These factors, among others, raise substantial doubt regarding the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern." On February 15, 2019, NAUH announced Thomas Bickart as their new Chief Financial Officer. Bickart was CFO at TCI College of Technology from 2013 to 2016 and later worked at

EdisonLearning EdisonLearning Inc., formerly known as Edison Schools Inc., is a for- profit education management organization for public schools in the United States and the United Kingdom. Edison is based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. School districts hire t ...

, Inc. to restructure its operations. In March, the university announced that most of its 24 ground campuses would be closed, except for Ellsworth Air Force Base and King's Bay Naval Submarine Base. On April 15, 2019, National American University reported that they must post a letter of credit for either 50% ($36.7 million) or 15% ($11 million) of its

Title IV Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) covers the administration of the United States federal student financial aid programs. American colleges and universities are generally classified with regard to their inclusion under Title IV, ...

awards to continue participating in the program. It faced further pressure with an $800,000 debt payment due the following month and an ongoing federal False Claims lawsuit. NAU's students were surprised that the campuses were closing. National American University received $1,453,446 under the first round of the 2020

CARES Act The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act, is a $2.2trillion Stimulus (economics), economic stimulus bill passed by the 116th U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump on March 27, ...

, $390,269 under the second round of the Covid Relief Bill, and $207,146 under the 2021

American Rescue Plan The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, also called the COVID-19 Stimulus Package or American Rescue Plan, is a economic stimulus bill passed by the 117th United States Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden on March 11, 2021, to s ...

. In October 2021, Minnesota Office Plaza filed a lawsuit against NAUH, claiming that NAUH hid assets to avoid paying $2.3 million in back and future rent. In January 2022, NAUH reported $8.2 million in assets, $15.9 million in liabilities, and less than $400,000 in cash. The school is currently on

Heightened Cash Monitoring Higher education in the United States is an optional stage of formal learning following secondary education. Higher education is also referred as post-secondary education, third-stage, third-level, or tertiary education. It covers stages 5 to ...

by the US Department of Education. A class action lawsuit by 43 former students is also pending. In April 2022, NAUH reported less than $50,000 in cash.

Academics

Programs

National American University is organized into four academic divisions: * College of Undergraduate Studies * Henley-Putnam School of Strategic Security * Harold D. Buckingham Graduate School * College of Legal Studies National American University offers Bachelor of Science degrees, Associate of Applied Science degrees, and diplomas in accounting, management, business administration, allied health,

criminal justice Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have been accused of committing crimes. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include the rehabilitation of offenders, preventing other ...

, healthcare management, health and beauty management, and

information technology Information technology (IT) is the use of computers to create, process, store, retrieve, and exchange all kinds of Data (computing), data . and information. IT forms part of information and communications technology (ICT). An information te ...

. In August 2008, NAU's graduate studies program was renamed the Harold D. Buckingham Graduate School, in honor of the late owner. Graduate degree programs include an

M.B.A. A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as account ...

, a Master of Management degree, a Doctor of Education (EdD), and Master and Doctoral degrees in Strategic Security, Terrorism and Counterterrorism Studies, and Intelligence Management.

Faculty

According to the College Navigator, National American University has 1 full-time instructor and 249 part-time instructors.

Enrollment

Total student enrollment has declined from 9,519 students in 2015 to 3,398 students in February 2019. In March 2019, National American University announced that it was closing most of its remaining 24 physical locations, including campuses in Rapid City and Sioux Falls. and is now an online university. The

College Navigator College Navigator is a consumer tool created by the US Department of Education and its National Center for Education Statistics so that people can evaluate US colleges that receive Title IV funds. College Navigator includes institutional data on pr ...

reports NAU's total enrollment at 1,610 students.

Student outcomes

According to the College Scorecard, NAU's Rapid City campus has a 16 percent graduation rate. Salary after completing ranges from $25,484 (AA in health and administrative medical services) to $56,163 (BSN). Two years after completion, student loan debt borrowers were 31% in forbearance, 26% not making progress, 17% defaulted, 9% in deferment, 8% delinquent, 5% making progress, 2% discharged, and 1% paid in full.

Accreditation

NAU is regionally accredited by the

. Several NAU programs are separately accredited by multiple national, educational and professional associations.

Locations

Remaining locations

*Online (1,440 students) *Georgia *Kings Bay Naval Base (40 students) *South Dakota *Ellsworth Air Force Base (118 students)

Closed campuses

Colorado *Centennial (Denver Metro) *Colorado Springs (North) *Colorado Springs (South) Indiana *Indianapolis Kansas *Garden City *Overland Park *Wichita (East) *Wichita (West) Minnesota *Bloomington *Brooklyn Center *Burnsville *Rochester *Roseville Missouri *Independence *Lee's Summit *Zona Rosa (Kansas City) Nebraska *Bellevue New Mexico *Albuquerque (East) *Albuquerque (West) Oklahoma *Tulsa South Carolina *Charleston (Joint Base Charleston) South Dakota *Rapid City *Sioux Falls *Watertown Texas *Austin *Georgetown *Houston *Killeen *Lewisville *Mesquite *Richardson

National American University Holdings, Inc.

National American University Holdings, Inc., was a publicly traded corporation (NASDAQ: NAUH) holding company for NAU and other assets. The corporation is located in Rapid City, South Dakota. National American University Holdings, Inc. is now an "Over The Counter" traded company listed on the OTCQB since January 2019.

References

External links