CNN.com reports that career colleges refuse to give up the ghost following the recent passage in Congress of "gainful employment" regulations, which impose severe conditions on these schools with respect to receiving federal student aid revenue.

Lambasting short-seller Steve Eisman for his recent critiques of the for-profit education industry, president and chief executive of the Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities Harris Miller is quoted as saying that Eisman is "in the business of ruining the reputation of companies so he can make money when their stock prices drop."

Nonetheless, some for-profits have taken a hit from the bad publicity. The Wall Street Journal reports that "ITT Educational Service's Inc.'s (ESI) first-quarter earnings fell 2.4% as the for-profit educational company reported lower revenue." The article also relates that the industry in general is bracing for new regulations from the U.S. Department of Education related to recruiter compensation, graduate debt, and other issues related to for-profit education.

ITT refuses the back down, however; the company continues to add classrooms and open new campuses.

Perhaps it's only right and proper that ITT struggles on. EducationInvestor.com reports that a think tank recommends that for-profit schools should be used to educate children in economically depressed areas. Poorer students, the think tank finds, will benefit from the innovations initiated by the for-profit education sector.

The battle rages on, and amid the clatter and din one thing remains clear: for-profit education meets an important need in American society, and it won't go down without a fight.