The economic value students derive from postsecondary education relies on both earnings and wealth outcomes. And while sufficient earnings can create economic stability, wealth--which is the total value of assets (what one owns) minus total value of liabilities or debts (what one owes)--is key to the security necessary to withstand life's…

Student debt is growing, as is the mental health crisis among Black borrowers. While the situation is dire, it is also a byproduct of failed and intentionally racist policies going back generations, which means it can be solved by better public policies. This brief is the second in a four-part series using qualitative data from the National Black…

Student debt levels were already pronounced before the pandemic hit, with $91.1 billion in annual federal student lending in 2019-20, up from $20.7 billion in 1990-91. Over that same period, per-student borrowing rose from $2,110 to $6,276, after adjusting for inflation. Evidence available as of Nov. 20, 2021, suggests that the COVID-19 downturn…

More than a million federal student loan borrowers default each year, and the U.S. Department of Education reports that as of June 2020, roughly 1 in 5 borrowers with federal student loans was in default. Since that time, the coronavirus pandemic and related economic downturn have continued to take a significant toll on households and businesses…

The objective of this review was to evaluate the results of Federal Student Aid's (FSA) process for suspending involuntary collection and refunding payments involuntarily collected on defaulted Department-held loans in response to the Coronavirus pandemic. The information presented in this report was obtained and analyzed through interviews,…

The collapse of good labor market opportunities for workers without a college degree is the elephant in the room in higher education policy discussions today. A high school diploma no longer provides a guarantee of financial security, let alone opens the door to the middle class. In response, some lawmakers and advocates have introduced a host of…

Black students are more likely to take on debt, borrow higher amounts, and struggle with repayment than their peers, because they generally have fewer resources to pay for college, thanks to the ongoing generational effects of systemic racism. This debt burden has far-reaching financial consequences, and many Black borrowers are unable to afford…

Nearly 43 million college student borrowers across the United States owe more than $1.56 trillion in outstanding federal student loans. The number of student borrowers in the country has increased by 1.3 million, or 3.1 percent, over the past five years, while the amount of outstanding student debt in the country has increased by a whopping $…

This year's "Tennessee Higher Education Fact Book" consists of four sections and an appendix of additional resources and terminology. The four main sections of the report provide data on Student Participation, Student Success, Academic and Fiscal Trends, and Outcomes-Based Funding. Relative to the previous Fact Book, Quality Assurance…

This year's "Tennessee Higher Education Fact Book" consists of five sections and an appendix of additional resources and terminology. The five main sections of the report provide data on Student Participation, Student Success, Academic and Fiscal Trends, Quality Assurance Funding, and Outcomes-Based Funding. Each section begins with…

This year's "Tennessee Higher Education Fact Book" consists of five sections and an appendix of additional resources and terminology. The five main sections of the report include: (1) Student Participation, Fall 2020; (2) Student Success, Academic Year 2019-20; (3) Academic and Fiscal Trends, Academic Year 2019-20; (4) Quality Assurance…