Strayer to acquire Capella Education for $1.9B

STRAYER Education is tying up with Capella Education in a deal worth about $1.9 billion under an administration that looks much more favorably at non-profit schools that had come under a harsher spotlight in recent years. The two schools, however, stood out from others mired in inquiries about students left with large debts and limited prospects. Strayer University and Capella University will continue to run as independent institutions with separate boards. The tie-up of schools comes as the U.S. Education Department considers rolling back Obama-era rules that would have erased federal loans for students defrauded by for-profit colleges. Strayer and Capella together serve about 80,000 students across all 50 states. Both universities will operate under Strayer Education Inc., with corporate headquarters in Herndon, Virginia. Strayer Education will be renamed Strategic Education Inc. and still use the ticker symbol “STRA.”