UO, OSU students ask court for refunds over online learning
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Three students have filed class-action lawsuits against Oregon’s two largest colleges, saying they were charged full price for online classes of poorer quality than in-person classes.
The Oregonian/OregonLive reports when the University of Oregon and Oregon State University closed their campuses because of the coronavirus pandemic, they did not offer to refund any or all of students’ tuition bills.
The University of Oregon says on its website that in order to provide quality education, it cannot discount tuition. The universities did agree to refund portions of their room and board.
OSU spokesman Steve Clark says despite what the lawsuit suggests, the university’s costs for delivering instruction have not decreased as a result of the pandemic.
“The University of Oregon, we believe, has unfairly continued to charge tuition payers for all of the things they were not allowed to experience and use during the COVID-19 campus closure and switch to online classes,” said Steve Berman, managing partner of Hagens Berman and attorney for students in the class action.
Caine Smith filed the suit against Oregon. Danielle Pranger and Garrett Harris filed the complaint against Oregon State.
The complaints were filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court earlier in March. The suits did not specify how much they are seeking in damages.
Read more at: https://apnews.com/article/lawsuits-coronavirus-pandemic-oregon-portland-education-306743f3892573a790c8e4a99ff05c50
