Wannabee TWO-State Governor Busted For Violations

- Weld-run college jolted by his jilted students

By Kimberly Atkins
Tuesday, August 9, 2005 - Updated: Kentucky for-profit trade school headed by former Massachusetts Gov. William F. Weld may soon be hit with a formal complaint by the state's licensing board amid charges it failed to deliver to its students.

Louisville-based Decker College is under probe by the Kentucky Board for Proprietary Education after eight students sued the school claiming it did not provide state-accredited training and job placement.

Investigators at the state's Attorney General's office have already turned over a report to the state licensing board, which is expected to take action soon, state officials said.

But Weld, who is actively exploring the New York governor's race and serves as the school's chief executive officer, said the charges stem from a disgruntled teacher and union electrician who was fired for urging students to sue.

Brian Vandenburg, an IBEW union electrician, admitted to helping students he said became suspicious of the program after they complained to him that they felt shortchanged by the school.

Vandenburg was fired last year, and the college sued him for intentional interference with a business relationship. Weld said most, if not all, of the students who filed suit were Vandenburg's students.

``The IBEW union sees Decker College as a business threat,'' Weld said. ``These eight students went over to the union hall and obtained a lawyer.'' The lawsuit is now in mediation, he said.

Vandenburg said he told students about union apprenticeship programs that offer full training and job placement for as little as $3,000. ``These students went to Decker because they didn't know any better,'' he said.

But Weld defends the school as a ``new breed'' alternative to four-year apprenticeship programs. The one-year college, backed by Weld's New York private equity firm Leeds Weld & Co., offers a four-week on-campus program followed by an online training course for $10,000 in tuition.