UNION TOWNSHIP, Ohio — An Eastgate beauty school abruptly closed in September, months after collecting full tuition payments for some of its students.
The school’s owner blames federal funding cuts for its sudden demise, but the parents of two students who each lost more than $10,000 say they were misled about the school’s financial condition.
“They knew in April when they took our money, and they still didn’t give us any inkling that they were closing, that they would be shutting down or that they were having financial struggles,” said Leslie Miller, owner of Kenadi Hair Salon in Miamitown.
WATCH: We spoke to two students impacted by the school's abrupt closure
Miller is a 32-year veteran of the hair styling industry.
She paid $13,000 for her daughter, Kenadi, to attend Beauty Artistry Academy. Both were impressed by its Eastgate facilities.
“I thought it was a good fit for her,” Miller said. “It seemed like a great school. Their program, everything about it seemed great. I liked the fact that it was individually owned, instead of a chain.”
But as she looks back, Miller said there were some red flags. The school was never accredited by the National Accrediting Commission of Career Arts & Sciences.
Its website lists the school as having “candidate status,” which requires training programs and other activities that must be completed before applying for initial accreditation.
“Concerning this school, I can confirm that it is not accredited by NACCAS, has not applied for NACCAS accreditation, and is not currently a Candidate,” wrote NACCAS Executive Director Darin Wallace, in an email response to the WCPO 9 I-Team’s questions.
“I knew that it hadn’t been certified or accredited but never even dreamed that it would be something that would cause it to shut down,” Miller said. “When we paid, she said, ‘Oh, they’re coming here in June to do the state accreditation.’ When she told us it was going to close, now it’s going to be a year or two years before they become accredited.”
The school’s founder said the closure was caused by funding cuts at the U.S. Department of Education and a lender’s unwillingness to refinance the school’s debt, according to a letter that Angela “Chris” McAlister Daily wrote to the Ohio State Cosmetology and Barber Board on Sept. 15.
“Two independent consultants made us aware that the Department of Education was experiencing up to an 18-month delay on reviewing applications for federal funding after the Department of Education cut approximately 50% of the staff in early 2025,” said the letter. “We began working with Wright-Patt Credit Union in April to either refinance the SBA loan or obtain additional working capital. On September 8, 2025, the bank made us aware that they were not going to work with us.”
In a phone interview, McAlister Daily said the school had a prospect list of 778 people who wanted to enroll with federal student loan funding. Schools must be accredited before they can sign a “program agreement” to offer federal student loans, under Title IV of the Higher Education Act.
McAlister Daily said she was hoping to qualify for federal student loan funding this year, but President Donald Trump announced in March that he was shifting student loan responsibilities to the U.S. Small Business Administration, as part of a broader effort to dismantle the Education Department.
McAlister Daily had an ambitious plan for her Eastgate beauty school, which included five suites that graduates could rent to start their own salons. It also had a lease to operate the Regis Salon at Eastgate Mall. Regis closed in June, and the suites closed with the school in September.
In the end, Beauty Artistry Academy had 96 graduates over two years and 20 students pursuing certificates, McAlister Daily said. She also claimed most students received refunds after signing a release required by her attorney.
“I did not steal nobody’s money,” McAlister Daily said. “Anybody that did not start school, they have their money. Anybody that was in school starting class, they got a prorated amount sent to them. There was like three of them that refused to (sign) because they didn’t agree with the amount that the state wanted me to give back.”
Ohio Administrative Code requires schools to pay full refunds to students who’ve yet to begin training and pro-rata refunds to those who’ve started classes. The refunds are based on how much of the program students have completed.
But Ohio’s cosmetology board “does not have the authority to directly recover monies owed to these students, and the situation will need to be addressed through private legal action,” wrote Lisa Pearson, the board’s executive director, in an email response to the I-Team.
And that leaves two students named Kenadi in a lurch.
“My mom stole (the name) from her mom,” joked Kenadi Bynum, a friend of the Millers who attended Beauty Artistry Academy with Kenadi Miller.
Bynum’s parents paid full tuition in July for the 1,500-hour program. They were shocked when a school employee called all students to the lunchroom to announce the closure.
“They basically just told us that they didn’t have the funding anymore,” Bynum said. “There were some girls that only had like 15 days left and then they were done. And they just like didn’t know what to tell them and then people were upset, mad.”
Bynum and Kenadi Miller have since enrolled in The Paul Mitchell School, hoping to graduate by next July.
Leslie Miller has consulted an attorney, who told her it might cost more to sue for a refund than she would ultimately receive from it. She also filed a complaint with the Ohio Attorney General, hoping to force a full refund.
“They still willingly took 10 to 15 students’ money, knowing that they were going to close in a few months. So, I’m hoping that they make things right and they return everyone’s funds,” said Miller.
