The Idaho State Board of Education voted unanimously Thursday to approve the University of Idaho’s plans to buy the University of Phoenix for $550 million — just one day after the deal became public.
The State Board gave its approval at a special meeting with nearly no public input or debate.
U of I plans to purchase the university through a not-for-profit entity it created called NewU.
The University of Phoenix is a predominantly online school with about 85,000 students, according to an FAQ page about the acquisition on U of I’s website.
U of I President Scott Green said at the meeting that the University of Phoenix first approached Idaho’s land-grant university in March. State Board President Linda Clark said the members held three meetings regarding the possible acquisition in executive session, meaning the discussions were not open to the public.
Green said a “very strict” nondisclosure agreement prevented university leadership from publicly disclosing the bid.
“We didn’t go into this lightheartedly,” Green told the State Board. “The value proposition to the state of Idaho is the opportunity to enhance affordable online education to the entire state.”
Idaho’s deal came less than a month after the University of Arkansas System board of trustees voted to reject a similar measure to acquire the University of Phoenix, Inside Higher Ed reported in April.
