Higher education is a critical tool for social mobility, but today, students and their families face significant challenges. It is against this backdrop that the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) convened the Task Force on Higher Education Financing and Student Outcomes. This group has identified several areas of federal policy ripe for reform that…

"Liberal Education" spoke with two higher education policy experts on what they expect and hope for from the Biden administration. Viviann Anguiano is an associate director for postsecondary education at the Center for American Progress. Eric R. Felix is an assistant professor at San Diego State University, specializing in higher…

College graduates and current students are swimming in a sea of debt. As of this writing, the total amount of outstanding student loan debt has been estimated at $960 billion. The Occupy Student Debt movement, inspired by Occupy Wall Street, has suggested that all student loan debt should be forgiven. As a starting point, members of the movement…

In the early 2000s, a highly selective university introduced a "no-loans" policy under which the loan component of financial aid awards was replaced with grants. We use this natural experiment to identify the causal effect of student debt on employment outcomes. In the standard life-cycle model, young people make optimal educational investment…

Discusses current bankruptcy law relating to the student loan debtor and outlines permissible activities of a university with respect to such a debtor during and after the bankruptcy proceeding. Advises universities to develop a set of guidelines and procedures for dealing with student loan debtors who file for bankruptcy relief. (MLF)

America's financial aid system provides too much taxpayer support to banks making college loans, demands too little of students assuming them, and burdens families with too much debt. The system fails to reward rigorous college-preparatory work in high school and penalizes students who hold jobs while in college. Lenders make extraordinary…

The Minnesota Supreme Court upheld a decision that student loan default, and subsequent dismissal through bankruptcy, is sufficient reason to deny a law student's bar admission. The bar's requirement of good moral character was interpreted as financial integrity in the Gahan case. (MSE)

This report describes progress in addressing problems identified earlier in the process of consolidating student loans under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program (FDLP) or the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP). Consolidation loans allow borrowers to extend their repayment periods and may combine loans under either or both…

Provisions of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code that affect the right of colleges to withhold transcripts as a means of collecting student debts are considered. Automatic stay provisions state that the filing of a petition for bankruptcy relief prohibits actions to collect obligations of the debtor. The discharge injunction provides that once a discharge…

Perspectives on defaults occurring under the two major federal student loan programs, Guaranteed Student Loans (GSL) and National Direct Student Loans (NDSL), are presented. Attention is directed to differences in the size and mode of operation of these programs, the extent and costs of default, comparisons with other types of loans, and the…

Given the pressure for alternative uses of government funds, loans will continue to have a role in the student assistance program. The limitations inherent in their use and how best they may be coped with are explored. (MLW)

Student loans have become an essential ingredient of financial planning for college. The Guaranteed Student Loan Program's default rate is over 10 percent. World Bank and other international data suggest three solutions: longer repayment terms, graduated repayment schedules, and forgiveness for individuals choosing public service. (8 references)…

This article urges the financing of higher education by the Tuition Advance Fund, under which any undergraduate degree candidate is advanced money to pay for his or her education. The money is later repaid through a payroll-withholding tax administered by the Internal Revenue Service. It argues that such a plan would be an improvement in both…

Secretary of Education William J Bennett's use of for-profit schools as a metaphor for all student-loan collection problems threatens to reduce the financial options for low-income, educational at-risk youth. More grant aid is a better solution than additional barriers to student eligibility. (MSE)

Kansas Wesleyan University, the first postsecondary institution to experience a sudden federal crackdown on delinquent loans for dormitory construction, developed a seven-part plan of payment and alternative building use and learned some lessons about resolving such a situation. (MSE)