Our Voices
Student Loans, Not Just for Millenials
By Debbie Westmoreland Baker In 1996, I borrowed $34,000 to become a public school teacher in Oklahoma. When the newly established income-based repayment plans and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) were offered in 2007, I inquired about the program and was...
The Burden of Freeing my Mind
By Julian Armand Cook I was reared on the south side of Chicago by a devoted and powerful single mother who struggled daily to provide for my family. Though our finances were beyond tight, the value of a college education was consistently lifted as an integral part of...
We Are Failing College Students Who Drop-Out
By Bob Hildreth College graduation ceremonies are just on the horizon. While young graduates are proudly throwing their caps in the air, we must not forget thatforty-one percent of U.S. college students are not graduating with their class and they will not graduate...
Wheelock, Mount Ida, who is next?
By Bob Hildreth Wheelock and Mount Ida collapsed overnight just like all the banks in 2008. Their sudden closings should bring a shudder to policy makers wondering which college will be next. In 2016, Forbes Magazine forewarned of their closings in its annual college...
Can An Automatic Income-Based Repayment Plan ‘Clean Up the Student Loan Mess’?
By Bahar Akman Imboden In a recent NYT article, Prof. Dynarski argues that the student loan mess can be solved if borrowers falling behind on their payments were automatically enrolled into an income-based repayment (IBR) plan. I agree that the increased lack of...
What do Toys”R”US and Wheelock College have in Common?
By Bob Hildreth Decreases in national birth rates have dealt fatal blows to both Toys”R” Us andWheelock College. Empty aisles and empty seats killed them. If low birth rates can destroy a national box store and a prestigious college what else may be vulnerable? The...
Are College Presidents Oblivious or Disingenuous about College Affordability?
By Bob Hildreth A new survey shows that college presidents are at best oblivious about how expensive tuition has become or at worst disingenuous about it. In fact, 86 percent of presidents believe that increased attention to student debt has mistakenly led the...
What Happens When Students Max Out On Their Loan Eligibility? A New Crisis
By Bahar Akman Imboden Student debt has ballooned in the last two decades and it is burdening an increasingly larger segment of our youth. But as tuition continues to rise relentlessly, what happens when students reach their maximum loan eligibility? At best, students...
Student Debt Also Affects Veterans!
By Bob Hildreth Veterans are one of the least known demographics suffering under the weight of student loans. Poor data collection coupled with the myth that the Post-GI Bill adequately covers college costs are to blame. A decade in which benefits have increased by...
Trading Social Security for Student Debt Relief
by Bob Hildreth Whether you like it or not, Congressman Tom Garrett’s proposal linking student debt repayment with social security exactly demonstrates where we at. The student debt repayment crisis has reached such alarming levels that we are ready to ask our...