JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – ITT Tech students left scrambling to continue their education after the for-profit college, under federal scrutiny, abruptly closed last week were welcomed at Florida State College at Jacksonville on Thursday.
FSCJ will wave its application fee for the displaced students until mid-March, and is offering help getting credits earned at ITT Tech transferred.
"You may not have the paperwork, but you can never get rid of the education," Navy vet and former ITT Teach student Artimus Smith said.
Smith said he and his friends got a two-week heads up that something was happening, but didn’t find out ITT Tech was closing until he checked out things himself.
“So, I took it upon myself. I went to the Jacksonville campus we were registered at, and (the) doors were closed… lights were off," Smith said.
Smith said he scrambled when ITT Tech closed, leaving his hopes for getting a drafting and design degree in limbo.
“Now, I’m here trying to see if anything can transfer over, and they’ve been really helpful with everything, as far as getting us all together, explaining what’s going on," Smith said. "I mean, you get emails, but as far as somebody explaining it face-to-face, it's totally different."
That's exactly the service that FSCJ is hoping to provide these students.
“It was a no-brainer for us," FSCJ spokeswoman Jill Johnson said. "I know it’s very unfortunate that the students at ITT Tech had to go through what they went through, but we’re here trying to see how we can best assist them to continue their educational journey.”
Smith says he’s not sure if he’s going to take the option to enroll at FSCJ, but that he’ll have to think about because once the application is filed and you’ve been accepted, you can defer admission.
FSCJ helped 30 former ITT Teach students before lunch, and had advisors on hand at the Student Success Center at the Deerwood campus until 7 p.m.
If you’re one of those former ITT Tech students or know a student, who couldn't make it to Thursday's open house, FSCJ's student advisors do not require an appointment.