Hofstra University Hit with Class Action Over Alleged Refusal to Refund Students for Shortened Spring Term [UPDATE]
by Erin Shaak
Last Updated on May 29, 2020
Stellato v. Hofstra University
Filed: May 1, 2020 ◆§ 2:20-cv-01999
Hofstra University owes refunds to students whose spring semester was shorted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a lawsuit claims.
Case Updates
May 27, 2020 – Another Case Filed in New York
Hofstra faces another proposed class action filed by a student looking to recover a portion of tuition and fees paid for the COVID-19-shortened Spring semester.
According to the suit, Hofstra failed to provide the in-person educational services and experiences that students expected and paid for.
The complaint can be read here.
According to a proposed class action, Hofstra University owes refunds to students who, because of the COVID-19-shortened spring semester, were deprived of the educational experience for which they paid tuition and fees.
The lawsuit explains that Hofstra suspended all in-person instruction and moved classes online in late March in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The plaintiff, an undergraduate student, alleges that the remote learning options offered by Hofstra “are in no way equivalent” to the in-person education for which he paid roughly $21,000 in tuition and fees for the Spring 2020 semester. The case argues that even if Hofstra claims it had no choice but to move classes online, the school has improperly retained the full amount of funds paid for services “that have diminished in value or are not being provided at all.”
Further, the lawsuit charges that the online education offered to students since mid-March is “subpar in practically every aspect,” with many professors providing “little or no actual, real-time instruction.”
“The remote education being provided is not even remotely worth the amount charged class members for Spring Semester 2020 tuition,” the complaint scathes.
The lawsuit looks to recover for students a pro-rated portion of tuition and fees proportionate to the amount of time left in the spring semester when classes were moved online and campus services were no longer provided.
The case is one of the latest in a wave of litigation filed against colleges and universities over their alleged refusal to issue refunds for the Spring 2020 semester.
ClassAction.org’s coverage of COVID-19 litigation can be found here and over on our Newswire.
Sign up for our newsletter here.
Before commenting, please review our comment policy.