CLEVELAND — The race for Ohio's U.S. Senate seat is on, and the candidates are under increased scrutiny.
3News has found that at least two different organizations have listed that Republican nominee Bernie Moreno earned a Master's degree in Business Administration after graduating from the University of Michigan. This situation was previously covered by the Ohio Capital Journal.
THE CLAIM
So let's VERIFY: Did Bernie Moreno earn an MBA?
SOURCES
Our sources are:
- The University of Michigan
- Court documents,
- Cleveland Foundation promotional materials
- Moreno's campaign
EXPLANATION
Moreno served on the board of the Cleveland Foundation from 2014-18, and the organization's Fall/Winter 2014 magazine included that Moreno had earned a Master of Business Administration from Michigan (see page 7 here).
Prior to this, a 2011 application included in a lawsuit about his car dealership in Florida also listed that he earned an MBA from Michigan in 1991.
But the university registrar's office confirmed to 3News that the only degree Moreno has earned from the school is a bachelor's degree. Moreno earned that, with high distinction, in April of 1989.
His campaign spokesperson Reagan McCarthy acknowledged this, and told us, "There is not a single example you can point to in which Bernie himself claims to have an MBA. Any example you cited is from another individual or entity."
ANSWER
So we can VERIFY that no, Bernie Moreno did not earn an MBA.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
So why do these documents say that he did?
According to Moreno's campaign, the 2011 dealership application was prepared by a staffer who made a mistake. As for the Cleveland Foundation biography, his campaign said they didn't know why it listed he had earned an MBA when he had not. We reached out to them to see what gave them that idea, and we haven't heard back yet.
If you come across something that you're unsure about being true or false, you can send it to us to VERIFY by emailing us at verify@wkyc.com, or texting us at (216) 344-3300.