George Wythe University

For the university in Washington, DC also known as GWU, see George Washington University.
George Wythe University
MottoBuilding Statesmen
TypePrivate, liberal arts, unaccredited[1]
ActiveSeptember 1992–August 2016
EndowmentNone[2][3]
Location
Salt Lake City
,
Utah
,
United States
Websitehttp://www.gw.edu
George Wythe University logo

37°38′18″N 113°15′00″W / 37.638279°N 113.250053°W / 37.638279; -113.250053

George Wythe University (GWU) was an unaccredited,[4] non-profit university in Salt Lake City, Utah.[5] GWU's curriculum borrowed from the Great Books of the Western World published in 1952 by Britannica and it claimed that its methodology was based on the Socratic seminar and Oxford tutorial system.[6] The school was named in honor of George Wythe, mentor to Thomas Jefferson.[4] The college closed in August 2016.[7]

According to the Salt Lake Tribune, "the education at George Wythe University is unorthodox and undoubtedly conservative, pushing a small-government vision, and has roots in the teachings of Cleon Skousen."[8] Skousen is "a significant figure in far-right politics", a frequent speaker for the John Birch Society, and was portrayed on the cover of its magazine.

The university received "bad publicity for awarding degrees students never really earned", based on administrators granting "life experience credits". In a highly unusual move, the Utah Division of Consumer Protection required the university to end operations in August 2016 because its degrees were of questionable value and the university was misleading students.[8] A Ph.D. the university awarded to Ann Tracy[9] was revoked.[10]

  1. ^ "Brick by Brick Online Order Form". Retrieved August 2, 2008. All Proceeds from GWC Brick By Brick benefit the Monticello Campus construction. GWC is a 501(c)3 organization, so all contributions are 100% tax deductible. Thank you for your support of George Wythe College.[dead link]
  2. ^ Oliver DeMille (April 20, 2009). "The Tuition Bubble Has Hit". Archived from the original on July 17, 2011. Retrieved April 20, 2009.
  3. ^ Brooks, Shanon. "The First Fifteen Years" (PDF). p. 1. Retrieved April 21, 2009. [dead link]
  4. ^ a b "Accreditation". George Wythe College. Archived from the original on June 5, 2009. Retrieved June 24, 2009.
  5. ^ "Academics". George Wythe University. Archived from the original on March 28, 2009. Retrieved March 26, 2009.
  6. ^ "About GWU". George Wythe University. Archived from the original on April 2, 2009. Retrieved March 26, 2009.
  7. ^ "GW.EDU - Academic Calendar". www.gw.edu. Archived from the original on 29 October 2017. Retrieved 29 October 2017.
  8. ^ a b Canham, Matt (October 21, 2015). "Small Utah college with big political ties is going under". Salt Lake Tribune.
  9. ^ "David Eric WOOD v. STATE of Arkansas". Archived from the original on October 7, 2006. Retrieved September 10, 2008.
  10. ^ Solomon, Andrew (16 November 2011). The Noonday Demon: An Atlas Of Depression. Simon and Schuster. p. 574. ISBN 978-1501123887.