Unpacking the Myths of Financial Aid

This is part of an ongoing series of printable pamphlets designed to explain how money flows through public research universities in general and the University of Michigan in particular.? By the Student Union of Michigan Originally published in StudentUnionofMichigan.Wordpress.com The pamphlets are intended ... Read more

New Cooperative Refinances Student Debt with Community Funds

Over the past two decades, the amount of money a college student must borrow to pay for their education has doubled. The graduates of 2014 now sit at the top of the class in student debt. Tuition fees have risen dramatically as household incomes have stagnated, at best, causing some ... Read more

Borrowing Against the Future

America’s higher education system is gaining a reputation for high costs and large inequities. In 2012, the U.S. spent $491 billion on higher education1 and twice2 as much per student than comparable industrialized countries. Where is all that money going? Scholars have offered several explanations for these high ... Read more

Worst. Anniversary. Ever. #TrillionDollarDebt

This week marks the two-year anniversary of student loan debt topping $1 trillion nationally — and another year of missed opportunities to address this growing crisis. That $1 trillion represents the second-largest personal debt in the United States. But even that jaw-dropping reality doesn’t tell the ... Read more

Welcome to the Creditocracy, Where Your Debt Piles Up Forever

Last month, the Federal Reserve confirmed the ominous news. The decline in US household debt from sky-high 2008 levels has halted, and the figures are on the rise again – up by $241bn (or 2.1%) in the fourth quarter of 2013, following a smaller increase in the third quarter. Unlike ... Read more

THE SUBPRIME EDUCATION CRISIS

Oh dear. We appear to have what might be termed sub-prime student loans on which there are rising defaults. In fact it is possibly worse than sub-prime mortgages, because unlike mortgages, delinquent student loans cannot be written off in return for asset seizure. The borrower is stuck with the debt – possibly for ... Read more