The school is actually accepting new enrollments until January 2016, which allows students to complete their studies before Le Cordon Bleu closes shop.
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The shuttering of campuses will be a slow process, with the schools remaining open until September 2017. The decision does not affect Le Cordon Bleu schools overseas. Ottawa is one of 21 Le Cordon Bleu International schools around the world, including London, Madrid, Tokyo, Shanghai, Mexico City and Sydney, Australia.
Le Cordon Bleu was founded in France in 1895 and its distinguished alumni includes Paul Qui, Stephanie Izard, and Brian Malarkey, but its most revered graduate is Julia Child, who enrolled in the Parisian culinary school in 1950 with financing from the G.I. Bill. Le Cordon Bleu enrolled 256 MA students, of which 29 are military veterans.
She brought French cuisine to the American public with her book Mastering the Art of French Cooking and went on to write more books as well as hosting her own television shows.
It may seem that you can’t turn on a TV in 2015 without being confronted by a dozen celebrity chefs – but that wasn’t enough to save the US arm of the cookery school that minted Julia Child.
Previous year the company announced it was looking to sell off its US campuses, but was unable to reach an agreement with a potential buyer.
The regulations “make it hard to project the future for career schools that have higher operating costs, such as culinary schools that require expensive commercial kitchens and ongoing food costs”, Nelson said in a statement. Despite the fact that tuition costs at the United States schools have climbed to a staggering $42,500 per year, several alumni have complained that career prospects after graduating haven’t actually been as spectacular as advertised.
In 2013 it paid $40 million to settle a class-action lawsuit brought by former students who alleged Career Education oversold the benefits of a Cordon Bleu diploma, leaving them with large student loans and only poor-paying restaurant industry jobs.
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The U.S. parent company of Le Cordon Bleu faced additional pressure following the gainful employment regulation adopted by the White House in July 2014.
