University of Idaho, University of Phoenix call off $550M acquisition
Two years ago, the University of Idaho shocked students, faculty and alumni when it announced that it planned to create a nonprofit to acquire the University of Phoenix, a for-profit, online school with a checkered past.
Now, the deal is dead.
The universities agreed to end negotiations for the $550 million purchase asset agreement, according to a news release Tuesday from the U of I.
“Although we continue to see great value in University of Phoenix, it has become cost prohibitive, and potentially distracting to our other work, to continue conversations,” U of I President Scott Green said in the release. “We respect the University of Phoenix and wish them all the best. We appreciate their commitment to these conversations, and we learned many things we may be able to incorporate into our work.”
The deal would have had Four Three Education, a nonprofit affiliated with the U of I, buy Phoenix from its hedge fund owner, Apollo Global Management. The U of I plans to seek formal approval to terminate the agreement at a special Idaho State Board of Education meeting scheduled Thursday.
Phoenix said in its own release Tuesday that it has “actively explored” other options since the State Board in June 2024 extended the deadline to finalize the deal to mid-June 2025.
The school declined to answer an Idaho Statesman question Tuesday about what other options the school has explored.
The U of I said legal challenges pushed discussions past the first agreement deadline. The challenges include a lawsuit from Attorney General Raúl Labrador, who accused the State Board of violating Idaho’s open meetings law when it negotiated the purchase of the University of Phoenix in private.
“While we have decided not to move forward, we remain appreciative of President Scott Green, the leadership of the University of Idaho, and the many elected officials in Idaho who supported this process,” Phoenix President Chris Lynne said in the release.
As part the State Board’s extension, the U of I agreed to drop exclusivity terms, allowing Phoenix to consider other offers. In exchange, Phoenix agreed to pay Idaho $5 million, and even more money if Phoenix sells to another entity, the Statesman previously reported.
A spokesperson for the State Board did not respond to Statesman questions sent by email Tuesday.
Jodi Walker, a spokesperson for the U of I, told the Statesman by email in April that the land-grant institution had already received $5 million from Phoenix in reimbursement. Less than $12 million in reimbursement was outstanding, she said.
“Under the revised agreement, if the University of Phoenix did pursue another transaction, the University of Idaho would benefit from and receive a substantial fee, should that other transaction materialize,” Walker said.
The U of I has spent about $17 million attempting to complete the acquisition, according to Walker. If the termination agreement is approved by the State Board on Thursday, Phoenix will have to fully reimburse U of I for out-of-pocket expenses it incurred while pursuing the acquisition, the release said.
This story was originally published June 3, 2025 at 10:52 AM.
