US Representative Nancy Pelosi's close friendship with University of Phoenix founder John Sperling has been documented by Suzanne Mettler in her book "Degrees of Inequality." University of Phoenix has community partnerships with Boys and Girls Clubs of America, the American Red Cross, and the Junior League. In 2016, University of Phoenix partnered with the ASIS Foundation to provide scholarships for students studying for security-related degrees. In March 2016, the first ten scholarship recipients were announced. In 2017, Vistria Group was part of the deal with Apollo Global Management to take over the schools. Vistria included two friends of former President Barack Obama: Anthony W. Miller and Martin Nesbitt. In 2019, University of Phoenix's parent company, Apollo Education Group, was the third largest higher education lobby. Apollo Education Group has 18 lobbyists at the federal level. In 2021, University of Phoenix demanded that the Republican Attorneys General Association refund a donation of more than $50,000 after the organization was allegedly involved in instigating the attack at the U.S. Capitol.