The CU system has settled a $5 million lawsuit, and students who attended any CU school in spring of 2020 may receive compensation as a result.
According to an article from The Denver Post, the plaintiffs alleged that students paid fees for on-campus services that were not available because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
CU’s Covid settlement website says that students who were enrolled in a program that was not meant to be solely online during this time are eligible for the refund. They must have also been enrolled in courses through their university’s census date.
Igor Raykin, the attorney who is representing the plaintiffs in this case, said in an article from the CU Independent that students should be aware that they will not receive a large refund.
“Basically, the more students sign up, the less each student gets. The less students sign up, the more each student gets. The pot of money doesn’t change,” Raykin said.
The size of the refund each student gets will also depend on which university they attend, and is also based on the tuition and fees of their campus. According to The Denver Post, UCCS students can expect to receive approximately $37 from this settlement.
CU’s vice president for communication Jeff Howard further discussed the reasoning for the settlement in an email statement to The Scribe.
“The safety of the university community was our prime imperative when COVID hit. We also worked to ensure students were able to continue their educational journeys, to get course credit, and for some, to graduate,” Howard said. “We strongly disagreed with the premise of the suit and fought it, but eventually settled because we would rather spend time and money on student success than on litigation.”
According to the CU Independent, students will receive an email through the university account CU has on file for them if they qualify. The window to sign up for compensation will open in July or August, sometime after the final approval hearing on July 19. They will have 180 days from that opening date to sign up.
Students may opt out if they want, but if not, the funds will automatically go to them in the form of a check via the home address the campus has on file. They may also select a digital payment method by responding to a potential email if the settlement gets final approval.
Students can visit the CU Covid Settlement website for more information about their rights, the options they have regarding the refund and the settlement itself.
CU settles lawsuit for $5 million for CU students that attended during spring of 2020. Photo by Meghan Germain.