Fordham University has filed a complaint against 2U, a company that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year. Fordham has a contractual relationship with 2U to support degree programs to students. 

2U’s website describes the company as being a “global online learning platform” for students to “improve their lives and communities.” The company offers services to more than 260 higher educational institutions and partners and has a “learner network” of more than 89 million individuals.

For Fordham students, 2U’s partnership with the university is designated as an online outlet to “[offer] a variety of degree programs online” while simultaneously “empowering more people with the ability to advance their professions in the 21st century.” 

2U’s website states that “[w]ith interest in online education growing, Fordham University made a choice to pursue digital opportunities,” while also working with faculty to “build the technology infrastructure, robust support network, and engaging course content to deliver an impactful education.” 

Specifically, 2U offers support and online options to Fordham students working to obtain their Master of Social Work in the Graduate School of Social Service, and students obtaining their Master of Studies in Law in Corporate Compliance in the university’s School of Law. 

As reported by Inside Higher Ed, 2U is in the middle of a restructuring process as a result of the company filing for bankruptcy earlier this year. As a result, Fordham and other institutional partners have been affected by strains in their contractual partnerships and have cited issues of an “increased student dropout rate” and “lip service” over implementing changes to the program. 

2U’s CEO Paul Lalljie stated in a bankruptcy announcement that the steps the company is taking with the filing will better enable the company to “continue investing in our offerings, services, and world-class team to deliver unparalleled online learning to meet the needs of students today.” 

According to an official release published by 2U on Sept. 13 2024, 2U has emerged from bankruptcy. 

Fordham has filed an objection to 2U’s restructuring process in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York, with the university claiming that the company cannot continue providing online services to students while the restructuring is occurring. 

Bob Howe, Fordham’s associate vice president for Media & Public Relations, declined to comment to the Ram about the complaint, referencing the university’s contractual obligations with 2U.

The Ram also contacted Dean Debra M. McPhee of Fordham’s Graduate School of Social Service who stated that the “GSS is not able to provide information beyond what is already part of the public record in the recent filing.” 

The filing states that “2U’s repeated breaches and its inability to cure them, much less give adequate assurance of future performance, renders 2U unable to assume the agreement with Fordham.” 

Fordham’s claims are the newest in a series of scandals for 2U in recent years, as 2U has been in debt since 2021 after owing $800 million to Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology over an acquisition of a nonprofit learning platform, as reported by Inside Higher Ed.

As the Ram reported last March, Vice Provost Jonathan Crystal stated that the university would be stepping away from their partnership with 2U and was working on developing their own platform. Crystal declined to comment on where that process currently stands and referred the Ram to Howe in light of these recent developments.  

While the future of the relationship between the university and 2U is unknown at this time, Crystal stated in March that when Fordham launches their own platform, the university will be spending less money on instructional costs while maintaining the same resources.

“Our priority is always to serve our partners and learners at the highest level. We currently provide placement services for over 25 degree programs in healthcare and education degree disciplines, and in 2023, we secured on-time placements for over 95% of students in these programs. While we disagree with Fordham’s claims, they are a valued partner, and we are committed to continuing to work constructively with them to ensure a successful partnership,” said a representative from 2U. 

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article did not state that 2U has emerged from bankruptcy. The article has been edited for clarification. The article has also been edited to include an official statement from a 2U representative.