Biden forgives $6.1 BILLION for art students 'cheated' by predatory Art Institutes

On Wednesday, President Joe Biden announced that his administration had moved to cancel over $6 billion in student debt held by those who took classes at the Art Institutes.

The now-defunct nationwide chain of for-profit schools had promised prospective students that attending their programs would open the door to endless career opportunities, however for the vast majority, that was not the case.

"Today, my Administration is approving $6.1 billion in student debt cancellation for 317,000 borrowers who attended the Art Institutes," the president wrote in a statement. "This institution falsified data, knowingly misled students, and cheated borrowers into taking on mountains of debt without leading to promising career prospects at the end of their studies."

He then took aim at his predecessor, Donald Trump, claiming he had "looked the other way when colleges defrauded students and borrowers," and concluded by vowing to continue "fighting to deliver relief to borrowers, hold bad actors accountable, and bring the promise of college to more Americans."

As the Houston Chronicle reports, when the last eight last Art Institutes campuses closed for good in 2023, nearly 2,000 students were left stranded with mountains of debt, and few options. This was on top of the thousands of others who had suffered a similar fate after the first few rounds of closures that concluded in 2019.

In the lead up to the closures, many of the schools lost their accreditation, and some chose not to inform students in an attempt to get them to continue paying the exorbitant tuition fees.

The company that ran the schools was frequently embroiled in legal battles and eventually reached a $95 million settlement with the Department of Justice after being hit with lawsuits alleging fraud and illegal recruiting practices in numerous states.