Basis of Presentation

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2017

Organization Consolidation And Presentation Of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Basis of Presentation

2. BASIS OF PRESENTATION

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, the financial statements do not include all of the information and notes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments, including normal recurring accruals, considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. Operating results for the quarter ended March 31, 2017 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the full year ending December 31, 2017.

The unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements presented herein include the accounts of Career Education Corporation and our wholly-owned subsidiaries (collectively “CEC”). All intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated.

         Our reporting segments are determined in accordance with Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 280 – Segment Reporting and are based upon how the Company analyzes performance and makes decisions. We organize our business across four reporting segments: CTU, AIU (comprises University Group); Culinary Arts and Transitional Group (comprises Career Schools Group). Campuses included in our Transitional Group and Culinary Arts segments are currently being taught out and no longer enroll new students. These campuses employ a gradual teach-out process, enabling them to continue to operate while current students have a reasonable opportunity to complete their course of study.

During the first quarter of 2017, the Company completed the teach-out of two Transitional Group campuses: Sanford-Brown Mendota Heights and Sanford-Brown Houston, which continue to be reported within the Transitional Group as of March 31, 2017 in accordance with ASC Topic 360 – Property, Plant and Equipment, which limits discontinued operations reporting.

Effective January 2017, the Company now accounts for cash flows related to cash payments for employee taxes made by the Company on the employees’ behalf for withheld shares related to stock settlements as a financing activity within the statement of cash flows. This change was a result of updated guidance issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) under Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No 2016-09, Compensation – Stock Compensation (Topic 718). Prior period amounts were recast to cash flows from financing activities from cash flows from operating activities to be comparable to current year reporting. See Note 3 “Recent Accounting Pronouncements” for further discussion.

Effective January 2017, the Company now accounts for cash flows related to changes in restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents within cash and cash equivalents when reconciling the beginning-of-period and end-of-period total amounts shown on the statement of cash flows. This change was a result of updated guidance issued by the FASB under ASU No 2016-18, Statement of Cash Flows (Topic 230): Restricted Cash. Prior period amounts are now included in cash and cash equivalents, beginning and end of the period, which were previously presented within cash flows from financing activities for changes in balances, to be comparable to current year reporting. See Note 3 “Recent Accounting Pronouncements” for further discussion.