Career college receives ultimatum
Must prove to province it’s solvent Many students have complained
The province has given Shelvan Kannuthurai until tomorrow to prove he is running a credible private career college that is financially solvent, or face possible shutdown by year’s end, according to a confidential letter obtained by the Toronto Star. Susan Hoyle-Howieson, superintendent of private career colleges for the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, sent the six- page letter outlining her concerns about the Toronto college following an Oct. 20 meeting with Kannuthurai and his lawyer. Hoyle-Howieson called the meeting after on-site inspections of Kannuthurai’s Canadian College of Business and Computers by her staff and an Oct. 14 Star report that prompted an “ unusually high volume of student complaints.” Hoyle-Howieson declined to comment yesterday, as did Kannuthurai. Founded by Kannuthurai in 1995, the college has a student body made up almost exclusively of visa students from South Asia, Iran and Africa. It faces numerous allegations that it provided substandard training and owes more than $ 200,000 ( U. S.) in refunds to applicants.
In her letter, Hoyle- Howieson says her concerns focus on three areas: the college’s solvency; the quality of its vocational programs; and whether the past conduct of Kannuthurai and his staff are reasonable grounds to conclude that the running of the college “ will not be carried on in accordance with law and with integrity and honesty.”
“ Because the deadline for renewing a private career college’s registration for 2006 is Dec. 30, the compliance issues described in this letter must be addressed well before the end of this calendar year,” says the Nov. 4 letter.
In the past month, the ministry has received more than 50 complaints from students or recruiting agents about unpaid refunds. As of last month, Kannuthurai owed at least $ 227,000 ( U. S.) to 60 applicants who were denied visas, according to documents obtained by the Star.
Ivor Carvalho, a Toronto immigration consultant who acted as a college recruiter, has eight applicants — six in Nigeria, one in Russia and one in Ivory Coast — who have waited more than six months for Kannuthurai to return a total of $ 32,000 ( U. S.).
Carvalho says he gets the same response from Kannuthurai when he calls to find out when the money will be paid.
“ He says, ‘ I’m working on it.’ I’m quite apprehensive and skeptical because he told me the same thing two weeks ago.”
Carvalho is also worried that other unsuspecting applicants overseas are signing up and sending Kannuthurai money. “ He doesn’t give a hint that he’s worried about anything. He said it’s business as usual.”
Kannuthurai told the Star he doesn’t process refunds until students provide an original visa rejection letter from the Canadian embassy in their country. But under the Private Career Colleges Act, students are entitled to refunds within 30 days of withdrawing from a program and need not provide a reason, Hoyle- Howieson’s letter states.
“ My office continues to receive complaints about refunds on a daily basis,” she says. “ Most of the refund claims . . . have been overdue on average for a period of 140 days.” The ministry wants Kannuthurai to provide a time frame for payment of refunds by certified cheque, which he must deliver to Hoyle- Howieson’s office for distribution to students.
In light of Kannuthurai’s admission of financial difficulties in a Star interview, including owing $ 66,699 in rent and $ 171,576 in income tax, the ministry obtained an updated Equifax report on the college, which “ is presently an extremely high credit risk,” the letter says. The province wants copies of the college’s latest corporate tax filing and its most recent financial statements, and reserves the right to audit them. Other issues relate to four ministry inspections of the college’s new facility at 32 Park Rd., a townhouse near Bloor and Yonge. Kannuthurai moved the college there from an office tower at 130 Bloor St. W. after skipping out on the rent. He could not provide the ministry inspector with floor plans of the facility, nor a certificate indicating compliance with fire codes. Also, the city advised the ministry that the Park Rd. facility is in an area zoned residential, which prohibits commercial or institutional activities. The inspector found that personal data sheets for five of the college’s six instructors were not available, and he “ could not therefore confirm that the instructors were qualified to teach a particular vocational program,” the letter says.
At least two students have successfully sued Kannuthurai for refunds, claiming a poor quality of education at the college, according to court documents. A random sampling of eight student files by the inspector found that seven failed to show that they had met admission requirements for a course. The letter expresses concern about the quality of the college’s aptitude test for admission, particularly in light of Kannuthurai’s comment to the Star that as long as students have the means to pay, “ everything else is irrelevant,” the letter says. The ministry is also concerned about reports that students were asked to redesign the college’s website and write course material, which several students told the StarKannuthurai demanded they do in exchange for a “ scholarship.” The college appears to be offering programs not approved by the ministry, the letter says.
During the meeting with the ministry, Kannuthurai said he had taken over management after dismissing the college’s manager, Riaz Abdullah. However, Abdullah told the Star he resigned on Oct. 14 because of concerns raised by the Star.