how much did purdue spend on licensing for blackboard learn

by Uriel Leuschke 6 min read

Purdue Response

I asked Tim Doty, my official contact at Purdue who has been very helpful thus far, to clarify this information last week, and unfortunately the response I got was a non-answer.

Purdue Document Requests

Purdue typically puts out its university Financial Report in October of each, but for some reason the report was not shared this year in the same fashion as before. Thanks to obsessive googling, I finally find a non publicized URL under the Board’s sub-folder.

Purdue Global Budget Sheet

Below is the budget I have obtained for Purdue Global, which I believe is accurate. I would have preferred to share budget information provided by Purdue, but that is not forthcoming. Note the Fiscal Year runs July 1 through June 30 as with most US colleges and universities.

Clarity on Marketing Expense

This budget appears to confirm my reading of the marketing expense in FY2019. The marketing expense line item (note that the transfer from Kaplan to Purdue finalized spring 2018) for Kaplan University / Purdue Global has been over $100 million since at least 2017.

Questions on Profitability

Furthermore, the budget seems to contradict Purdue’s statements “that Purdue Global expects to make a profit in fiscal year 2020 due to increased enrollment, better retention, and ‘normalized levels of investment in branding/marketing.’”. The FY2020 budget shows a loss of roughly $15 million. How to explain this discrepancy?

Questions on Viability

What I believe this budget shows is that any excess operating gains from Purdue Global will go to Kaplan Higher Education until such time as all deferred payments are paid and KHE no longer has to forego the remainder of the fee. Only then will Purdue Global start making “profits”.

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