Members of the Sinclair and Miami Valley college communities are weighing President Joe Biden’s recently announced plan to forgive some student loans. Reactions have been varied, ranging from appreciating the move to being skeptical of its potential impact.
In an August 25 press conference in the White House’s Roosevelt Room, the president
explained that the move would ensure that borrowers that made under $125,000 during the
pandemic would have $10,000 of their student loan debt forgiven. Additionally, those that made
under $125,000 and received a Pell Grant would have an additional $10,000 forgiven for a total of
$20,000. Students from low-income families that qualified for Pell Grants would also have their
debt reduced by $20,000.
“The burden is so heavy that even if you graduate, you may not have access to the middle-class life that the college degree once provided,” said Biden, speaking of student debt and his justification for forgiving it. “It’s about opportunity. It’s about giving people a fair shot. It’s about the one word America can be defined by: possibilities.”
Bill Kamil, a professor in Sinclair Community College’s department of history, humanities, and modern languages weighed in.
“The initiative seems to be the Biden administration’s recognition of the tremendous debt millions of Americans struggle to keep ahead of. In terms of student loan forgiveness, millions of people put off large purchases such as homes or automobiles because they are already carrying significant student loan debt,” said Kamil.
“The $10,000 (or for some $20,000) relief seems a compromise between those calling for an
elimination of all student loan debt and those arguing such a measure is unfair. Additionally,
the political timing (with midterm elections right around the corner) seems difficult to ignore,”
Kamil added.
Chloe Bryan, a creative writing major at Sinclair, gave their perspective.
“On one hand, finally seeing a little bit of relief from the government is great to see. But on the other, it feels like it’s too little too late. People have been clamoring to lower the cost of education for the past how many decades? It took a global pandemic to get them to lend us a hand and even then, they give it to us after a difficult 2020,” said Bryan.
“To be fair, there was some support then too but it still does not seem like its enough to me,” said Bryan. “I know a lot of people will be benefiting from this, especially the parents going to college. But it sounds like appeasement, not a solution.”
Edwin Nagasawa, a student at Ohio State University and a native of the Dayton area, offered their thoughts as well.
“For a lot of people it will be highly beneficial. I would personally like it if higher education was less expensive in the first place though,” said Nagasawa.
The Department of Education will release a detailed plan on how applications for the student loan forgiveness initiative can be made. According to the president, over 95% of borrowers, amounting to 43 million people, will benefit from this plan. During his address, Biden also announced plans to fix the student loan program with what he called “an income driven repayment plan.”
Reporter
Ismael Mujahid