Akerman v. Ithaca College
United States District Court, Northern District of New York
Case No. 3:23-cv-1565-ECC-TWD

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT, NORTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK

Case No. 3:23-cv-1565-ECC-TWD

Akerman v. Ithaca College

ATTENTION: FORMER STUDENTS OF ITHACA COLLEGE

YOU MAY BE ENTITLED TO MONEY AS PART OF THE PROPOSED SETTLEMENT

Please read this:

NOTICE OF CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT

TO:     All students enrolled as undergraduate or graduate students on campus at Ithaca College during the Spring 2020 semester who did not withdraw prior to March 23, 2020, for whom any amount of tuition and fees were paid from any source other than a scholarship or grant from Ithaca to Ithaca for the Spring 2020 semester, and whose tuition and fees have not been refunded in their entirety prior to this Settlement.

DATED: August 19, 2025

PLEASE READ THIS NOTICE CAREFULLY

This Notice relates to a proposed settlement of this class action litigation. It has been authorized by the United States District Court, Northern District of New York and Honorable Elizabeth C. Coombe, U.S.D.J. It contains important information as to your right to participate in the settlement or elect not to be included in the class. The following pages detail your options, your rights, common questions, and relevant issues that Class Members ask about class action settlements.

For a change of address or to receive an electronic payment you will need to submit an Election Form. Upon logging in, you will need to input your unique login credentials and choose the method of payment you would like to receive (physical mailing to your current address, Venmo, or PayPal). You are not required to complete the Election Form in order to receive payment. If you do not complete the Election Form, you will still receive your share of the Settlement in the form of a check to your last known mailing address maintained by Ithaca.

INTRODUCTION

Erik Akerman (“Plaintiff”), a student at Ithaca College (“Ithaca” or “Defendant”) during the Spring 2020 semester, commenced this action alleging breach of contract and quasi contract claims stemming from Ithaca’s transition to remote learning and services during the Spring 2020 Semester as a result of the Covid-19 Pandemic. The court in charge of this case is the United States District Court, Northern District of New York (the “Court”). The lawsuit is known as Akerman v. Ithaca College (the “Lawsuit”).  Erik Akerman is the Named Plaintiff, and Ithaca is the Defendant (together, the “Parties”). Plaintiff alleges in the Lawsuit that, among other things, Ithaca breached the terms of the contract entered into with Plaintiff and similarly situated individuals when Ithaca stopped providing in-person and on-campus educational services, as well as access to certain campus services and facilities on or about mid-March 2020 at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. Plaintiff sought, for himself and the Class members, a pro-rated refund of tuition and fees for the respective time that Ithaca switched to remote learning and services.

Ithaca has defended and vigorously contested the claims in the Lawsuit.  Ithaca denies any and all liability and wrongdoing and has asserted numerous defenses, including that the Class Members were provided with the contracted-for services, and Ithaca has not unjustly retained any benefit from the Class Members. The Parties have decided to settle the Lawsuit to avoid the expense, inconvenience, and distraction of litigation. Mediation with Hon. Suzanne H. Segal (Ret.) resulted in a proposal and resolution that was accepted by both Parties to resolve the claims in this action and would result in class-wide relief in exchange for a class-wide release of claims. The Court has not decided who is right and who is wrong.

The Parties have agreed to settle the Lawsuit subject to the approval of the Court via a signed Settlement Agreement and Release (referred to herein as “Settlement”). Ithaca has agreed to confer benefits upon the class in the amount of $1,500,000.00, from which it will create a settlement fund that will provide compensation to Class Members, pay for notice and administration costs, provide for any approved service award to Plaintiff, and compensate the attorneys for any approved fees, costs, and expenses. Class Members shall also receive non-cash benefits in terms of (1) a one-time tuition credit of $800 per student if such student attends graduate school at Ithaca, except this benefit shall not apply to physician assistant graduate programs, and (2) a complimentary ticket to Alumni Weekend (as further detailed below in Question 4.a below). The Parties have reached this Settlement through negotiations and mediation sessions, and then presented it to the Court for review and approval. As determined through that process, you are entitled to participate, and your legal rights may be affected. These rights and options are summarized below and explained in detail throughout this Notice.

YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS AND OPTIONS IN THIS SETTLEMENT:

PARTICIPATE

As described more fully below, to participate in the Settlement you do not need to do anything. If you do nothing you will receive a check upon approval of the Settlement by the Court to your last known mailing address maintained by Ithaca. However, if you want to receive your payment in electronic form OR update your mailing address, then you should fill out, sign and return the Election Form attached with this Notice to the Settlement Claims Administrator by October 05, 2025 to:

Akerman v. Ithaca College
c/o Settlement Administrator
Apex Class Action, LLC
P.O. Box 54668
Irvine, CA 92619

– or utilize the website that has been established for this case www.IthacaRefundLawsuit.com and complete the online Election Form with your unique login credentials provided on the first page of this Notice. The Election Form will need to be submitted by October 05, 2025 no matter what method you choose to submit it with.

EXCLUDE YOURSELF

If you wish to exclude yourself (“opt-out”) from the Lawsuit, you must follow the directions outlined in response to Question 7 below.

OBJECT

If you do not opt-out, you may object to the settlement if you choose to do so.  If you wish to object, you will need to write to the Court to explain why you are objecting or if you believe the Settlement is unfair or unreasonable. If the Court rejects your objection, you will still be bound by the terms of the Settlement for claims under Federal law. You will not be bound by the Settlement if you opt-out of this action as described herein.

DO NOTHING

Any Class Member who does not submit an Opt-Out Statement described herein will be deemed to have accepted the Settlement, will be bound by the Approval Order, and will have any Released Claims released and dismissed with prejudice. Additionally, you will not be allowed to pursue claims (as described herein) against Ithaca, separately or as part of this Lawsuit.