ECU officials reviewing request from NY attorney general

GREENVILLE, NC —   East Carolina University officials said today that they are reviewing a request from the New York state attorney general’s office for records related to student loans.

Similar records requests went to about 40 other universities. An accompanying letter from the office of N.Y. Attorney General Andrew Cuomo sent Aug. 1 cited a concern with “certain practices relating to the marketing of higher education loans.” The letter also said, “We understand that your university’s Athletic Department has an arrangement with University Financial Services, Inc. relating to loan marketing.”

Dr. Marilyn Sheerer, interim provost at ECU, said the university does not have preferred lenders for its students. Students and parents are welcome to do business with any lender they choose, she said. The university does not have any contractual arrangements with the lending company cited by the New York attorney general, Sheerer said. The ECU Athletics Department does have a contract with ISP Sports, a multimedia sports marketing firm based in Winston-Salem, which has a separate contract with the lending company, officials said.

“We applaud the attorney general’s interest in protecting the welfare of students,” Sheerer said. She said ECU would take this opportunity to review its contracts and relationships with many of its partners.