Tufts University Hit with Class Action Seeking Refunds for Pandemic-Shortened Spring 2020 Semester

New to ClassAction.org? Read our Newswire Disclaimer

Tufts University faces a proposed class action filed by a student who claims the school has refused to issue tuition and fees refunds for the Spring 2020 semester in which in-person classes were canceled amid the coronavirus pandemic.

According to the suit, in-person instruction effectively ended at the Medford, Massachusetts school on March 10. Thereafter, classes were either taught online or canceled outright for the remainder of the Spring 2020 semester, the case says.

Although Tufts’ response to the dangers presented by COVID-19 was warranted, the lawsuit says, the school has nevertheless refused to issue refunds for tuition and fees despite failing to provide the in-person educational experience for which students contracted and paid.

“Though Plaintiff and members of the Class paid Tufts tuition in exchange for a full semester of in-person education, Tufts ceased to provide the in-person education it promised, and thus has failed to uphold its side of the agreement,” the breach-of-contract case alleges. “Nonetheless, Tufts insists that students uphold their side of the agreement, and refuses to refund tuition and related expenses.”

The plaintiff, an undergraduate student, claims the remote education options offered by Tufts for the second half of the spring semester “cannot provide the same value” as in-person learning. After the school’s campus was closed in March, students were deprived of access to “a wide variety of academic and student events, on-campus entertainment, facilities, and athletic programs,” which represented “considerable value” to tuition and fee payers, the case argues.

The value of in-person interaction with faculty and the on-campus experience is further emphasized by Tufts’ own degree requirements and policies, the lawsuit says, noting the school does not permit credit transfers for online courses and “severely restrict[s]” the number of online classes students may take.

Per the complaint, the online options offered by Tufts for both the Spring and Fall 2020 semesters—which the case says will be taught online with on-campus life “drastically reduced”—are in no way equivalent to the in-person educational experience paid for and expected by students. The lawsuit argues that Tufts has no right to retain the full price of tuition and fees at the expense of its students.

“While the effects of the COVID-19 crisis are shared by all individuals and institutions across the country, Tufts has failed to apportion the burden in an equitable manner or consistent with its obligations as an educational institution,” the complaint scathes. “Tufts is not entitled, by either contract or equitable principles, to pass the entire cost of its COVID-19 related closure to its students and their families.”

The 16-page case, filed October 28, echoes the claims of many other proposed class actions filed against colleges and universities nationwide over their alleged refusal to issue refunds for the Spring 2020 semester cut short by the COVID-19 crisis.

ClassAction.org’s coverage of COVID-19 litigation can be found here and over on our Newswire.

Sign up for ClassAction.org’s newsletter here.