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Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Nature of Operations and Liquidity

v3.7.0.1
Nature of Operations and Liquidity
12 Months Ended
Apr. 30, 2017
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]  
Nature of Operations and Liquidity

Note 1. Nature of Operations and Liquidity


Overview


Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ. (together with its subsidiary, the “Company” or “Aspen”) is a holding company. Its subsidiary Aspen University Inc. (“Aspen University”) was organized in 1987. On March 13, 2012, the Company was recapitalized in a reverse merger. All references to the Company or Aspen before March 13, 2012 are to Aspen University.


Aspen’s mission is to offer any motivated college-worthy student the opportunity to receive a high quality, responsibly priced distance-learning education for the purpose of achieving sustainable economic and social benefits for themselves and their families. Aspen is dedicated to providing the highest quality education experiences taught by top-tier professors - 54% of our adjunct professors hold doctorate degrees.


Because we believe higher education should be a catalyst to our students’ long-term economic success, we exert financial prudence by offering affordable tuition that is one of the greatest values in online higher education. In 2014, Aspen University unveiled a monthly payment plan aimed at reversing the college debt-sentence plaguing working-class Americans. The monthly payment plan offers bachelor students (except RN to BSN) the opportunity to pay their tuition at $250/month for 72 months ($18,000), nursing bachelor students (RN to BSN) $250/month for 39 months ($9,750), master students $325/month for 36 months ($11,700) and doctoral students $375/month for 72 months ($27,000), interest free, thereby giving students a monthly payment tuition payment option versus taking out a federal financial aid loan.


On November 10, 2014, Aspen University announced the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (“CCNE”) has granted accreditation to its Bachelor of Science in Nursing program (RN to BSN) until December 31, 2019.


Since 1993, we have been nationally accredited by the Distance Education and Accrediting Council (“DEAC”), a national accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education (the “DOE”). On February 25, 2015, the DEAC informed Aspen University that it had renewed its accreditation for five years to January, 2019.


Liquidity


At April 30, 2017, the Company had a cash balance of $2,756,217.


On April 22, 2016, the Company issued 404,624 shares of common stock to two of its warrant holders in exchange for their early exercise of warrants at a reduced exercise price of $1.86 per share. The Company received gross proceeds of $752,500 from these exercises. As a condition of the warrant holders exercising their warrants, Mr. Michael Mathews, the Company’s Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, converted a $300,000 note and in connection with this conversion, Mr. Mathews was issued 132,588 shares of common stock. (See Note 11)


In August 2016, the Company closed on a $3 million credit line with its largest shareholder. The credit line, whose terms include a 12% per annum interest rate on drawn funds and a 2% per annum interest rate on undrawn funds, will extend through August 2019.  The Company initially drew down $750,000 under the line, of which approximately $248,000 was used to repay a secured line of credit with a bank and then drew down $500,000 in January 2017. In March 2017 the company drew an additional $900,000. The entire balance of $2,150,000 plus interest was paid off and the letter of credit was terminated on April 7, 2017. (See Note 10)


On April 7, 2017, the Company raised $7,500,000 through the issuance of 2,000,000 common shares.  The net proceeds of $6,996,000 were used to retire the third party line of credit, the loan payable and convertible loan and support working capital needs.  (See Note 11).