Marinello Schools of Beauty close, leaving an uncertain future for students in many states.

The Marinello Schools of Beauty announced Thursday they are closing all 56 of their campuses as a result of the loss of federal funding.

The DOE announced this week that it is taking action to end participation in the federal student financial assistance programs at 23 Marinello Schools of Beauty campuses in California and Nevada.

Locally, that includes schools in such communities as Ontario, Huntington Beach, Burbank, San Bernardino, Lomita, Whittier and Simi Valley, among others.

The DOE alleges that Marinello was knowingly requesting federal aid for students based on invalid high school diplomas, under-awarding federal Title IV aid to students, charging students for excessive overtime and engaging in other acts of misrepresentation.

On a press release Rashed Elyas Chairman & CEO of Marinello Schools of Beauty sent this letter to its students.

We know that this has been a hard week with a lot of rumors circulating and we want you to know that we truly care about you and your future. We continue to make our best effort to help in this difficult time. However, it is with great sadness and regret that we must inform you that effective Thursday, February 4 (CA, NV, and UT) / Friday February 5 (CT and KS), Marinello Schools of Beauty will cease operations and that your campus will be closed.

We want you to know that we did everything in our power to avoid this unfortunate conclusion and keep your school open. Unfortunately, the Department of Education’s unprecedented and unfounded actions left us with no other option except to close our schools.

We greatly appreciate the sacrifices you have made to pursue your education and hope that you continue on with your studies. We are working hard, and are well into the process of arranging partnerships with other schools that would enable you to complete your coursework.

We will be hosting meetings on campus next week for you to obtain all of the necessary paperwork, as well as lots of information to help you understand how you can continue your education either through our partnerships with other schools or through another channel. At this meeting, you will receive your official transcripts, proof of training, Financial Aid transcripts, state contacts, and other important materials. Representatives of the state agencies in California, Nevada and Connecticut will be present at these meetings to explain your rights and the options available to you.

Please see the schedule of meetings in the right-hand column. We recommend that you make every effort to attend your campus’s meeting. However, if you cannot attend the meeting, we will mail the relevant information to the home address you give us. Please fill out the information below with your most up to date contact information and submit it to student@marinello.com. We also encourage you to continue checking www.marinello.com for further information.

Our staff has been so helpful in the face of this adversity, so please do not be upset with anyone working at our campuses. We all want to come together to get through this very difficult situation.

Despite this disruption, we encourage you to continue to pursue the goals you set for yourself when you enrolled at Marinello. We are proud of your achievements and know that you have a brighter future ahead because of the skills you developed with us. We wish you the very best of luck.

Sincerely, Rashed Elyas Chairman & CEO Marinello Schools of Beauty