Temple University settles over alleged false US News & World rankings
PHILADELPHIA - Pennsylvania's top prosecutor settled with Temple University on Thursday regarding years of falsified data submitted to U.S. News & World Report.
Attorney General Josh Shapiro settled with the university for the false reporting about the school's online MBA program at the Fox School of Business, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
The false reporting, “done intentionally and knowingly to boost the school’s rankings, elevated Fox Business School as the nation’s top online MBA program for several consecutive years," Shapiro said in a statement. "The school used this ranking to attract prospective student applicants.”
The university has said the allegations have no merit.
Moshe Porat, the former dean of the university's business school, filed a $25 million defamation lawsuit against the school and its president for firing him in May.
In January 2018, the business school reported inaccurate data had been submitted to the rankings organization.
The university asked a law firm to review the data-reporting processes and the firm found the school reported inaccurate data to the publication for multiple years.
As a result, U.S. News & World Report removed the school's ranking for 2018.