>>>
>>> TONIGHT, FOLLOWING A KING 5 INVESTIGATION, THE STATE OF
WASHINGTON HAS SEVERED TIES
PERMANENTLY WITH A TROUBLED
SCHOOL FOR INJURED WORKERS, THE
INVESTIGATORS FOUND A RENTON
BASED SCHOOL OFFICE CAREERS
SHELLED OUT DIPLOMAS NO MATTER
WHAT, LEAVING PEOPLE WITHOUT A
JOB AND THE WORKER COMPENSATION
BENEFITS CUT OFF.
SUSANNA JOINS US WITH A MAJOR
UPDATE IN HER SERIES, SCHOOL OF
BROKEN PROMISES.
BROKEN PROMISES. >> Reporter: DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
AND INDUSTRIES JUST WRAPPED UP
THE AUDIT ON THE SCHOOL AND THE
RESULT IS THIS THREE-PAGE ORDER
THAT SAYS OFFICE CAREERS
VIOLATED REGULATIONS AND THAT
L&I WILL NOT PAY FOR INJURED
WORKERS TO ATTEND THE SCHOOL
EVER AGAIN.
EVER AGAIN. WHAT IS YOUR REACTION, NOW THAT
YOU FOUND OUT YOU ARE NOT GOING
TO OFFICE SCHOOLS?
>> I'M SO HAPPY, IF I DIDN'T
HAVE A BAD BACK, I WOULD BE
DOING BACK FLIPS.
>> Reporter: HE INJURED HIS
BACK ON THE JOB, HE IS ECSTATIC
TO HEAR THE STATE HAS SCRAPPED
THE PLAN TO SEND HIM OR ANY
OTHER INJURED WORKER TO OFFICE
CAREERS.
CAREERS.
CAREERS. >> THANK GOD, AND I HAVE NO
KNOWLEDGE OF A COMPUTER, NOR
WILL I EVEN LIKE THEM.
>> DO YOU THINK YOU COULD HAVE
GONE THROUGH A COURSE LIKE
THAT?
THAT?
THAT? >>
THAT? >> NO.
>> NO.
>> NO. >>
>> NO. >> THESE STUDENTS WERE SET UP
TO FAIL, WITH A LITTLE CHANCE
OF KICKING OFF A NEW CAREER IN
OFFICE WORK, INSTEAD, THE STATE
INCLUDED THE CERTIFICATES NO
MATTER WHAT, YOU DIDN'T EVEN
HAVE TO FINISH THE COURSE WORK,
AND THEY FOUND THERE'S NO PROOF
THE SCHOOL PREPARED STUDENTS
FOR GAINFUL EMPLOYMENT.
>> I'M SO HAPPY FOR ALL THE
FUTURE WORKERS WHO WON'T BE
SUBJECTED TO GO INTO THIS FOR
RETRAINING.
RETRAINING. >> CATHERINE IS AN EMPLOYMENT
ATTORNEY, THE FIRST TO COMPLAIN
ABOUT THE SCHOOL'S SHABBY
PRACTICES, BEGINNING 12 YEARS
AGO.
AGO.
AGO. >>
AGO. >> YES, THEY CHANGED IT FOR NOW,
AND FOR FUTURE STUDENTS, BUT
WHAT ABOUT ALL THE STUDENTS AND
WORKERS THAT WERE SENT THERE
FOR ALL OF THOSE YEARS WHILE
THE DEPARTMENT HAD THAT
INFORMATION AND DATA IN THE
FILES AND DIDN'T DO ANYTHING
WITH IT?
WITH IT?
WITH IT? >> DO YOU THINK YOU WAITED TOO
LONG?
LONG?
LONG? >>
LONG? >> IN HINDSIGHT, YES.
>> RICH OVERSEAS TRAINING
PROGRAM, HE SAYS FROM THIS
CASE, REAL SYSTEMIC CHANGE IS
ON THE WAY.
>> BECAUSE WHAT WE FOUND AND
YOU PROBABLY DID, TOO, IS THAT
THE STATE IS LITTERED WITH
BROKEN PEOPLE.
BROKEN PEOPLE. THEY WERE BETRAYED BY THAT
SCHOOL AND THE SYSTEM THAT PUT
THEM IN IT.
>> IT HAS BEEN A LESSON AND I
CAN TELL YOU THIS, WE ARE GOING
TO TAKE THE LESSONS WE LEARNED
FROM THIS AUDIT AND WE ARE
GOING TO MAKE SURE THIS KIND OF
THING NEVER HAPPENS AGAIN.
>> Reporter: THEY DENIED AN
INTERVIEW BUT THE ATTORNEY FOR
THE SCHOOL TELLS US THE STATE
AUDIT IS BOGUS, THE STRUGGLE,
THE SCHOOL NEVER VIOLATED ANY
RULES, THEY NEVER REQUIRED THE
STUDENTS GET JOBS AFTER
GRADUATION, SO WHY ARE THEY
GETTING PUNISHED FOR THAT NOW?
>> I GOT A CERTIFICATE THAT
WASN'T WORTH WHAT IT WAS
WRITTEN ON.
WRITTEN ON. >> CHANGES CAME TOO LATE, SHE IS
THE WORKER THAT HAD A SERIOUS
NECK INJURY AFTER LIFTING HEAVY
BOXES FOR TWO DECADES, WHEN SHE
FINISHED HER ONLINE COURSE IN
2016 AND GOT HER CERTIFICATE,
SHE WENT STRAIGHT TO WORK
SUBMITTING JOB APPLICATIONS.
ABOUT 120 APPLICATIONS, BUT SHE
DIDN'T GET A JOB, INSTEAD, SHE
GOT SOMETHING ELSE.
A LETTER FROM THE STATE OF
WASHINGTON SAYING WITH HER
RETRAINING PLAN COMPLETE, SHE
WAS NO LONGER ELIGIBLE FOR
WORKER COMPENSATION.
WORKER COMPENSATION. SHE WAS CUT OFF, DISABLED, AND
BROKE.
BROKE.
BROKE. A
BROKE. A FRIEND LETS HER LIVE RENT
FREE.
FREE.
FREE. >>
FREE. >> YOU COULD HAVE BEEN IN YOUR
CAR OR ON THE STREETS WITHOUT
YOUR FRIEND.
YOUR FRIEND. >> I WOULD HAVE.
>> THE STATES ORDER CUTS OFFICE
CAREERS OFF AFTER PROPPING THE
SCHOOLS UP OVER A DECADE, NO
SCHOOL IN THE UNITED STATES GOT
MORE MONEY THAN OFFICE CAREERS
TO RETRAIN INJURED WORKERS.
SINCE 2010, THEY BROUGHT IN
MORE THAN 7.3 MILLION PUBLIC
DOLLARS, THAT IS MORE THAN
DOUBLE PAID TO OTHER ACCREDITED
PROGRAMS SUCH AS EVERETT
COMMUNITY COLLEGE OR TECHNICAL
COLLEGE IN TACOMA.
>> WHAT WOULD YOU CALL THAT?
>> IT'S A JOKE BECAUSE THE
CERTIFICATE ISN'T WORTH
ANYTHING.
ANYTHING.
ANYTHING. >> KING 5 INTERVIEWED 51
SIMILAR STUDENTS, TEACHERS
MOVED THEM ALONG WHETHER THEY
UNDERSTOOD THE MATERIAL OR NOT.
THEY SAID THE SCHOOL SKIPPED
OVER ENTIRE SECTIONS OF THE
CURRICULUM AND OF THOSE WHO GOT
A CERTIFICATE, WE FOUND ONLY
ONE GRADUATE OF VANCOUVER
WASHINGTON WHO GOT A JOB.
>> OUT OF ALL OF THEM, WE ONLY
FOUND ONE WHO GOT A JOB AFTER
OFFICE CAREERS.
OFFICE CAREERS. WHAT IS YOUR REACTION TO THAT?
>> IT'S OUTRAGEOUS AND IT
SHOULD OUTRAGE EVERYONE THAT SO
MANY PEOPLE, AND SO MUCH STATE
MONEY WAS SPENT.
>> THE ATTORNEY DENIES ANYONE
GETTING A CERTIFICATE WITHOUT
COMPLETING THE COURSE, AND HE
SAID MOST OF THE STUDENTS ARE
SATISFIED WITH THE EDUCATION
BUT THEY ARE TOO AFRAID TO TALK
TO US ABOUT THESE REPORTS.
WHILE DOZENS OF STUDENTS SAY
THE INVESTMENT DID NOTHING FOR
THEM, WE FOUND THE MONEY AND IF
IT AT LEAST ONE PERSON, THE
SCHOOL'S OWNER, DAVID JORDAN.
IN 2017, HE REPORTED TO THE IRS
THAT HIS SALARY THAT YEAR WAS
MORE THAN $429,000.
>> THAT IS SAD, THEY JUST FOUND
A PLACE TO FUNNEL EVERYBODY
INTO, JUST TO GET US OFF THE
BOOKS.
BOOKS.
BOOKS. NOT TO TRULY GET YOU RETRAINED
WELL, JUST TO BE DONE WITH YOU.
>> DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU DODGED
A BULLET?
A BULLET?
A BULLET? >> I TRIED.
>> OFFICE CAREERS SAY THEY ARE
DEFINITELY APPEALING, THAT IS
WHAT THE SCHOOL PLANS TO DO AND
IT IS THEIR RIGHT TO DO SO, THE
OFFICE CAREERS ATTORNEY SAID
KING 5 HAS UNFAIRLY
MISCHARACTERIZED HIS CLIENT,
AND THESE STORIES ARE NO WAY
REPRESENTATIVE OF THE
EXPERIENCE OF MOST OF HIS
CAREER STDENTS.
CAREER STDENTS. HE ALSO SENT ME TWO SIGNED
DECLARATIONS FROM STUDENTS WHO
WERE SATISFIED, ONE OF THEM
SAID SHE COULD NOT BE HAPPIER
WITH THE TRAINING AND HAVE
RECEIVED FROM THE INSTRUCTOR
AND SHE COULD NOT BELIEVE WHAT
SHE WAS HEARING FROM THE
EARLIER REPORTS.