| Tri-Valley University | |
|---|---|
| Type | Christian Distance education/ Not accredited |
| President | Susan Xiao-Ping Su[1] |
| Location | Pleasanton, California, United States |
| Website | http://www.trivalleyuniversity.org |
Tri-Valley University was an unaccredited university located in Pleasanton, California. According to its website, the school "is a Christian higher education institution offerring quality academic programs in Engineering, Business, Ministry, Law and Medicine at a Christian learning environment." Most of the classes for the school were offered online.[1] The school was shut down after being raided by Immigration and Customs Enforcement due to possible visa fraud.
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It is under investigation by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement department for allegedly operating as a front for illegal immigration.[2] The ICE claims the school issued F-1 visas to students who were in different states.[3] From May 2009 to May 2010, the school went from having 11 students with F1 visas to 939 students with F1 visas. The number went to 1555 in December 2010. Students paid up to $2700/semester for tuition. Furthermore, the Department of Homeland Security claims students who were enrolled were paid if they referred another student to the school.[4] Susan Su specifically blames two student workers, one of whom runs a consulting company, for operating the visa fraud scheme.[5] The school was shut down after a raid by ICE on January 19, 2011. The US Attorney filed suit to forfeit five properties owned by Susan Su relating to the school.[6]
Foreign students, mostly from India, were interrogated by the ICE. Some were radio tagged to monitor their movements, a move the Indian government protested as treating the students who had been tricked by TVU's promoters like common criminals.[7] ICE has set up a web page for former TVU students, instructing them to call SEVP to discuss the students' options.[8]
In March 2011, The Chronicle of Higher Education published an investigation into the practices of TVU and other American for-profit higher education institutions that are virtually unknown within the United States, lack accreditation, and specialize in enrolling foreign students.[9]
On May 2, 2011, TVU's founder and owner, Susan Su, was arrested on indictments by a Federal Grand Jury on 33 counts. [10][11]
The university started operating in 2008. They were able to operate under a religious exemption from California Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education. However, that ended in 2010 when California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education handled these issues. The university did file for a religious exemption, but the request was denied. As a result, the school could no longer accept new students starting in January 2010. The school was certified by Department of Homeland Security to offer F1 Visas. One rule to qualify is the school's credits be accepted by three different established universities. However, a review of the affidavits files found two of the schools did not accept credits offered by the University which started the investigation.[12]