I am writing concerning my experiences at Colorado Christian University. It is my conclusion that this university does not operate in an ethical or moral manner. While attending CCU, I was lied to, deceived, discriminated against, and harassed by staff members. CCU uses unethical and dishonest recruiting practices.
I am a mental health worker, and was looking for a graduate program that would fit into my busy life. I work full time and am the father of two special needs children. With this in mind, I was looking for a program that would not conflict with work, and would allow me the time needed to deal with children with special emotional needs. The recruiter promised me, as well as many others in my cohort, that full-time enrollment would only take me away from my house one night a week. This was a very important selling point to myself, because bedtime is when my kids can be the most difficult and challenging. Therefore, it was important for me to find a program where I would be away as little as possible. This one night a week was more than the other program I was looking at, the program that I am currently enrolled in, offered. I asked the recruiter, “if full-time enrollment is two classes per term, and how does it work only being in class one night a week.” The recruiter replied “half of the night is dedicated to one class, and half of the night is dedicated to the other class.” I have children who have some severely emotionally related issues that require a lot of time to manage. It was important for me to find a flexible program. Therefore, I also asked the recruiter were I to take a term off for whatever reason, for instance to help my children in school, if that would interfere with my program. She said that would not interfere with my program at all, and I would be able to take as much time off is needed.
To my surprise and dismay full-time enrollment required attendance two nights a week, in contrast to what I was told. Many of my cohorts were also dismayed by this fact, but we were reassured that this is “a two-year Fast-track program”, and if we “stayed on the express train, we would be done in two years”. With this in mind, I stayed with the program at full-time enrollment as long as I could. When it was evident that the full-time enrollment was having a drastic negative affect on my family, I went to the student advisor to enroll part-time. It was at this point that I was told part-time enrollment was not acceptable, and that full-time enrollment was expected. Furthermore, I was told that if I did not continue full-time enrollment that I would not be able to take any classes for almost a year. This is in direct opposition to two points I was told at recruiting. In previous conversations with the student advisor, I did tell her that I had a learning disability that I had been dealing with all my life. I was officially diagnosed with it in the second or third grade. It is a documented disability. Therefore, after debating back and forth if part-time enrollment would be allowed she said that she would “make a special exception for me based on my family situation and my learning disability.” I was not to tell any of my fellow students that I was allowed to go part-time because she was making a “special exception” just for me. I was very confused on how this could be a special exception when in recruiting they stated that part-time enrollment was completely acceptable and we had up to six years to complete the program.
It was at this time that I, along with most of my cohort, found out that this was not a two-year program. We all thought that we were almost at the half way mark, only to find out that a six months were added to the program without any of us knowing about it. As it turns out, the extra classes were the first classes that we took. This shows not only dishonesty but also deception. If these classes were the first classes that we were to take, why did nobody tell us that the program had been extended? It would have been nice to have this information at the start of the program, rather than at the halfway point. Not only were we not told that the program had been extended, but we were continually being told that it was “a two-year fast-track program.” If we had had this information up front, many of us would have gone with other programs. If I personally had this information, I would have gone with the program where I am currently enrolled. Since I had to start over from scratch when I enrolled in this other program, CCU effectively wasted a year and a half of my time, not to mention around $35,000.
Aside from being a university that uses unethical, dishonest, and deceptive recruiting practices and retention practices, CCU also openly discriminates against those with learning disabilities. I first experienced this discrimination at CCU when I was in human growth and development. Online discussion posts were the vehicle we used to discuss a topic for the week. One particular week the text covered the development of grade school children. An entire section in the textbook was dedicated to how learning disabilities have a negative impact on the development of school-age children. The discussion post that week asked us to discuss our personal experiences in development during grade school. Therefore, I discussed my experiences with having a learning disability and how it affected my development. Despite the fact that the textbook dedicated an entire section to this matter and I had properly cited it as so, the professor reprimanded me. He said, “That is not a psychological problem” and that I needed to “keep my discussions academic.” This is in spite of the fact that the prompt for the discussion was our personal experiences. I was further perplexed as to how an individual with a PhD in psychology could not see how learning disabilities could affect a child’s development. He was adamant about this fact, despite the fact that I backed up my discussion with what the book said about the topic.
To make matters worse this professor was also my faculty advisor. The faculty advisor is the person that students are to turn to when he or she is having difficulty in the program. When it was clear that my learning disability was interfering with my ability to meet this particular professors expectation, I asked him what I could do. He said, “You just need to work twice as hard as everybody else.” My final meeting with this advisor he stated that it would be the last time he discussed my performance. He then outlined exactly what I would need to do to stay in the program. He then said, “There are no assignments like this in this class, so I do not know what you are going to do.” I took this statement as notice that I would be expelled from the program. The bottom line is I was on “academic probation,” and threatened with expulsion with a GPA of 3.514. It seems that my academic performance was not the issue, but rather prejudices from the institution. I have never asked for a reasonable accommodation because of my disability. I generally try to avoid them. It is, however, what the law requires. The only reasonable accommodation that this institution attempted was to allow me to attend on a part-time basis. I fail to see how this can be a “reasonable accommodation” when it was clearly stated to me prior to starting the program that I could attend “as a full-time student, or a halftime student. You have up to six years to complete the program at your pace.”
To add insult to injury, CCU is now trying to collect further funds from me. I think that it is unacceptable that any academic institution would act in such an manner. I am discussed that this institution claims to be a “Christian” institution. If one is looking for a graduate program in the counseling field I would not recommend CCU. If one is in the Fort Collins, Loveland, or Greeley area I would recommend attending UNC. It is a proven program, whereas CCU seems to have some serious issues that need to be addressed.
Colorado Christian University Reviews
I am writing concerning my experiences at Colorado Christian University. It is my conclusion that this university does not operate in an ethical or moral manner. While attending CCU, I was lied to, deceived, discriminated against, and harassed by staff members. CCU uses unethical and dishonest recruiting practices.
I am a mental health worker, and was looking for a graduate program that would fit into my busy life. I work full time and am the father of two special needs children. With this in mind, I was looking for a program that would not conflict with work, and would allow me the time needed to deal with children with special emotional needs. The recruiter promised me, as well as many others in my cohort, that full-time enrollment would only take me away from my house one night a week. This was a very important selling point to myself, because bedtime is when my kids can be the most difficult and challenging. Therefore, it was important for me to find a program where I would be away as little as possible. This one night a week was more than the other program I was looking at, the program that I am currently enrolled in, offered. I asked the recruiter, “if full-time enrollment is two classes per term, and how does it work only being in class one night a week.” The recruiter replied “half of the night is dedicated to one class, and half of the night is dedicated to the other class.” I have children who have some severely emotionally related issues that require a lot of time to manage. It was important for me to find a flexible program. Therefore, I also asked the recruiter were I to take a term off for whatever reason, for instance to help my children in school, if that would interfere with my program. She said that would not interfere with my program at all, and I would be able to take as much time off is needed.
To my surprise and dismay full-time enrollment required attendance two nights a week, in contrast to what I was told. Many of my cohorts were also dismayed by this fact, but we were reassured that this is “a two-year Fast-track program”, and if we “stayed on the express train, we would be done in two years”. With this in mind, I stayed with the program at full-time enrollment as long as I could. When it was evident that the full-time enrollment was having a drastic negative affect on my family, I went to the student advisor to enroll part-time. It was at this point that I was told part-time enrollment was not acceptable, and that full-time enrollment was expected. Furthermore, I was told that if I did not continue full-time enrollment that I would not be able to take any classes for almost a year. This is in direct opposition to two points I was told at recruiting. In previous conversations with the student advisor, I did tell her that I had a learning disability that I had been dealing with all my life. I was officially diagnosed with it in the second or third grade. It is a documented disability. Therefore, after debating back and forth if part-time enrollment would be allowed she said that she would “make a special exception for me based on my family situation and my learning disability.” I was not to tell any of my fellow students that I was allowed to go part-time because she was making a “special exception” just for me. I was very confused on how this could be a special exception when in recruiting they stated that part-time enrollment was completely acceptable and we had up to six years to complete the program.
It was at this time that I, along with most of my cohort, found out that this was not a two-year program. We all thought that we were almost at the half way mark, only to find out that a six months were added to the program without any of us knowing about it. As it turns out, the extra classes were the first classes that we took. This shows not only dishonesty but also deception. If these classes were the first classes that we were to take, why did nobody tell us that the program had been extended? It would have been nice to have this information at the start of the program, rather than at the halfway point. Not only were we not told that the program had been extended, but we were continually being told that it was “a two-year fast-track program.” If we had had this information up front, many of us would have gone with other programs. If I personally had this information, I would have gone with the program where I am currently enrolled. Since I had to start over from scratch when I enrolled in this other program, CCU effectively wasted a year and a half of my time, not to mention around $35,000.
Aside from being a university that uses unethical, dishonest, and deceptive recruiting practices and retention practices, CCU also openly discriminates against those with learning disabilities. I first experienced this discrimination at CCU when I was in human growth and development. Online discussion posts were the vehicle we used to discuss a topic for the week. One particular week the text covered the development of grade school children. An entire section in the textbook was dedicated to how learning disabilities have a negative impact on the development of school-age children. The discussion post that week asked us to discuss our personal experiences in development during grade school. Therefore, I discussed my experiences with having a learning disability and how it affected my development. Despite the fact that the textbook dedicated an entire section to this matter and I had properly cited it as so, the professor reprimanded me. He said, “That is not a psychological problem” and that I needed to “keep my discussions academic.” This is in spite of the fact that the prompt for the discussion was our personal experiences. I was further perplexed as to how an individual with a PhD in psychology could not see how learning disabilities could affect a child’s development. He was adamant about this fact, despite the fact that I backed up my discussion with what the book said about the topic.
To make matters worse this professor was also my faculty advisor. The faculty advisor is the person that students are to turn to when he or she is having difficulty in the program. When it was clear that my learning disability was interfering with my ability to meet this particular professors expectation, I asked him what I could do. He said, “You just need to work twice as hard as everybody else.” My final meeting with this advisor he stated that it would be the last time he discussed my performance. He then outlined exactly what I would need to do to stay in the program. He then said, “There are no assignments like this in this class, so I do not know what you are going to do.” I took this statement as notice that I would be expelled from the program. The bottom line is I was on “academic probation,” and threatened with expulsion with a GPA of 3.514. It seems that my academic performance was not the issue, but rather prejudices from the institution. I have never asked for a reasonable accommodation because of my disability. I generally try to avoid them. It is, however, what the law requires. The only reasonable accommodation that this institution attempted was to allow me to attend on a part-time basis. I fail to see how this can be a “reasonable accommodation” when it was clearly stated to me prior to starting the program that I could attend “as a full-time student, or a halftime student. You have up to six years to complete the program at your pace.”
To add insult to injury, CCU is now trying to collect further funds from me. I think that it is unacceptable that any academic institution would act in such an manner. I am discussed that this institution claims to be a “Christian” institution. If one is looking for a graduate program in the counseling field I would not recommend CCU. If one is in the Fort Collins, Loveland, or Greeley area I would recommend attending UNC. It is a proven program, whereas CCU seems to have some serious issues that need to be addressed.