Bridgepoint Education has eliminated a total of 117 jobs in San Diego, Denver and Clinton, Iowa, that company officials say will better align its staffing with its student enrollment.
Bridgepoint spokeswoman Shari Winet said the job cuts were across the board, with no one department targeted Bridgepoint, a for-profit college, operates Ashford University, which is based in San Diego but has a campus in Clinton Iowa. The company also owns University of the Rockies in Colorado.
Job cuts were made at Bridgepoint’s headquarters and the Ashford University operations, but not University of the Rockies. Winet told KROS NEWS that of those 117 eliminated positions there were 9 jobs cut in Clinton.
“The changes were designed around a strong commitment to academic quality, student success and operational efficiency,” the company said in a statement. “As a result, Bridgepoint Education is now in a more advantageous position to support its two academic institutions, San Diego’s Ashford University and Denver’s University of the Rockies.”
Most students attend Ashford University, with a majority taking classes online.
Bridgepoint’s colleges have seen declining enrollment — partly by design to meet accreditation standards. At the end of September, the colleges had 68,566 students — down from 91,358 a year earlier.
The company said it expected to see enrollment begin to grow again starting in the fourth quarter of last year.
At the end of 2012, Bridgepoint had 3,900 non-faculty staff. In June of last year, it offered buyouts to an estimated 400 employees, and it cut 47 administration jobs from its corporate headquarters.
