ASU signs final agreement to acquire Thunderbird school

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) - Arizona State University officials have signed a final agreement to acquire the Thunderbird School of Global Management and expect to close the deal by Dec. 31.

The non-profit, private Thunderbird school in Glendale has struggled financially.

A proposed venture with the for-profit Laureate Education was opposed by alumni and failed to receive approval from its education accreditor in March.

Thunderbird and ASU officials announced in July they had agreed on a letter of intent, outlining the general terms of the school being absorbed into ASU.

Both sides have been working toward a final deal during the past several months.

Thunderbird was first established in Glendale in 1946. Last fall, the school reported a student body of 530 in full-time programs and 482 in its online and executive MBA programs.