Who is Kenneth Stone: a major new (to me) fake degree seller

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by John Bear, Jun 14, 2018.

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  1. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    I'm not aware of an Axact connection, but possible. His 67 websites are found here. A few dozen fake universities, and lots of sites to help people find degree programs.

    http://tinyurl.com/y864wj77
     
  2. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    I doubt there's a real "Kenneth Stone." And I don't like the parasitic "Fix Windows now" or "here's some nice malware for you" popups, when I went to a couple of those "university" sites. The phony accreditors look like they bear the pawprints of Axact types and the University of Mayford perked my ears up, as quite a few Axact "universities" had names ending in "Ford." Maybe Shoaib Shaikh of Axact had something against those cars!

    I think this whole thing may well be a new product of the same set of felonious minds. The websites are quite well-designed but contain telltale English errors - combination of non-standard English and hurried, unchecked copying.

    "Diploma printers wanted - must be able to handle extremely high volumes."
     
  3. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    Definitely Axact-related. Some of "Kenneth Stone's" University names are well-known Axact "schools" like Nixon University - my favourite: "I got my transcript from Nixon U. but 18 credits were missing!" - (Old Watergate joke.) McFord, Baychester, Brooklyn Park and other Axact "school" names. Case closed....Next?
     
    Last edited: Jun 14, 2018
  4. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    "Brooklyn Park is melting in the dark
    All the fake degrees are running down..." (Apologies to Jimmy Webb)
     
  5. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    "I don't think that I can take it, 'cause it took so long to fake it
    And I'll never have the Apostille again... Oh no..."
     
    SteveFoerster likes this.
  6. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    Well I'll be ... some text from the Axact-looking University of Mayford site is cribbed verbatim from former-DETC, now ASIC-accredited University of Atlanta! That doesn't bode well for either school!
     
    SteveFoerster likes this.
  7. Neuhaus

    Neuhaus Well-Known Member

    Not just for University of Atlanta, but imagine the potential fallout if it turns out that UAtlanta sold degrees while DEAC accredited. That's the sort of thing that could turn DEAC from comfortable flying under the radar to getting some ACICS level hatred directed their way.
     
  8. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    I haven't seen anything reliable yet (Axact and its victims can't really be considered reliable) about U Atlanta selling degrees at any point. Neuhaus, if you have such info, please share it with us - put us in the loop. And I could, of course, let my imagination run riot, but I have no facts as to why U. Atlanta resigned its DETC accreditation in 2013, at the end of the initial 5-year term. I'd have loved to have been a fly on the wall at a meeting between U. Atlanta and DEAC, but I have no info about any such meeting. If you have something on that, - again, please share it.

    My imagination can always run riot again (it does that) , but I can't really consider the verbatim copying from U. Atlanta by an Axact school as a sign of anything - except theft. Axact sites abound in such thefts from all manner of schools - British, American, big-name, no-name, whatever. "No collusion," as your leader might say. Do you have info to the contrary you can share with us?

    You made some earlier remarks about U. Atlanta - something about "shady school, shady founder." I'm confused - and interested - as to who you mean. Do you mean the Bettingers, who founded Barrington? Or are you talking of the Mithani brothers, Nick and Alex , who own(ed?) U. Atlanta, Iverson Business School (sued by its former students) and a beauty-related career school that was also problematic - high student loan default rates. Or are you talking about their father, Akber, whose corporation financed the purchase and re-branding of Barrington as U. Atlanta. Or someone else? (I have no idea who else might be involved now.)

    "ACICS-level hatred?" My, my! I thought Betsy DeVos was raising ACICS from the dust. I expect it'll be getting back up on its knees any day now! :)

    Neuhaus - please enlighten us. What does it all mean?
     
    Last edited: Jun 19, 2018
  9. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    The Barrington/U of Atlanta DETC accreditation visit was held at a time that Barrington's "campus" was a mailbox service in Alabama. I tried at the time unsuccessfully to learn where the accreditation visit held. My guess then was that it was one of those business service centers that rent conference rooms by the hour.

    As I've written here, on occasions when I asked then-DETC Executive Director Michael Lambert some challenging questions (in person) his response was, "Let's not go there, John."

    One of the "Let's not go there"s was with regard to the Canadian School of Management, accredited by DETC for a while, which got its degree-granting "authority" from the virtually non-existent Northland Open University in the Yukon Territory. (That weird situation was described in great detail in this forum, by George Gollin and Rich Douglas.)
     
  10. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    Well, it sure looks like somebody may have done something, but I guess it's hard to pin any tails on, when all the donkeys are ducking & weaving. From his emphatic statements, I thought maybe Neuhaus might somehow have the inside track, and was perhaps privy to info I didn't have.

    I remember Northland Open. I actually completed a semester there in the 80s, when enrolment was through ICS. I still can't figure why a school like ICS, with 100 years of good reputation, would involve itself in that - even for money. One semester was enough. I knew then to enroll in a 'real' school - and did.
     
  11. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    Some years before that, I remember an ICS / Northland Open salesman in the 70s telling me that Northland hoped to attain Regional Accreditation very soon, with the Middle States Association. Yeah, right after my Chevy Vega wins the Grand Prix! :( Typical salesman.
     

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