[ Something can be done about it-- on Beacon Hill]
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THIS YEARS MASS. GRADUATES ARE 400 MILLION IN DEBT  
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Bahar Adman Imboden, Rich Levy and Ian Rhodewalt
June 3, 2023
CommonWealth
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_ Something can be done about it-- on Beacon Hill _

Celebrating at Middlesex Community College, CommonWealth

 

GRADUATING FROM COLLEGE is a wonderful accomplishment reflecting your
unwavering dedication and commitment both inside and outside the
classroom. Throughout your academic journey, you have not only
acquired a diverse range of skills and knowledge but also fostered a
heightened sense of awareness, encompassing technical expertise,
analytical prowess, and much more. Many of you have overcome barriers
and hardships to get here, and you should be proud of yourselves. As
you embark on this next chapter, you are better equipped with the
essential tools to function as an analytical and contributing member
in a democratic and hopefully an economically thriving society.

Unfortunately, many of you have likely also accumulated significant
debt that will take years if not decades to repay. This debt will make
it challenging to buy a house, to afford to have kids or provide for
your family, and to get the job you want. This debt can also crush
your credit score, or worse, if you default (a likely scenario), will
undermine your future in multiple ways. This debt has a macro-level
impact on the racial wealth gap in the United States, as historical
racism has been intertwined with generational wealth. This translates
into students of color and particularly Black students having to take
on significantly more debt than their white peers in order to attend
college. This disparity is exacerbated by persistent obstacles
stemming from institutional racism in the job market and
discriminatory lending practices by banks.

Moreover, an increasing number of students are also parents, adding
further financial burdens while pursuing higher education. These
include additional expenses such as childcare and supporting their
families. Notably, Black student parents are disproportionately
burdened with higher amounts of student debt compared to parents from
other racial or ethnic groups, with an average borrowing amount
of $18,100 for college
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Addressing today’s racial justice issues necessitates the imperative
of canceling student debt, as it is an essential step towards
rectifying these disparities.

This spring, the graduating class of 2023 from our Massachusetts
public institutions alone, which comprises both community college
graduates and individuals receiving bachelor’s degrees from public
higher education institutions, collectively carries a staggering debt
of approximately $400 million.

* Collectively, community college students graduated with a total of
$34 million in student debt, averaging $11,740 per student.
* State university students graduated with a total of $174 million
in debt, averaging with $33,836 per student
* UMASS students graduated with a total $193 million in debt,
averaging with $34,290 per student

Due to the chronic underfunding of our public higher education system,
students are now forced to rely heavily on loans to finance their
degrees. Not only have appropriations to institutions decreased,
leading to increased tuition and fees, but state financial aid per
student has also consistently declined over the past two decades. As a
result, the purchasing power of state grants and scholarships has
diminished, leaving many students with significant unmet financial
need. Startlingly, 8 out of 10
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students attending four-year public institutions in the state face an
annual unmet financial need of $12,000, while 9 out of 10
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community college students have an unmet need of $8,557 per year.
Given these circumstances, it is unsurprising that they graduate
burdened with the weighty loans depicted in the table above.

It doesn’t have to be this way, either nationally or in
Massachusetts. In fact, it hasn’t always been this way.  In 1963
tuition and fees in 4-year public universities averaged $820 (in 2021
dollars) and by 2021 they were up to $9,580.
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2022-23 the Massachusetts average in-state tuition (in 2023 dollars)
was $10,036
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primary reason for the vast increase is the long-term defunding of
public higher education by the states – and Massachusetts is no
exception.

In Massachusetts, there is a way to begin to reverse this trend and
make public higher education, first, affordable, then debt-free and
finally even free. Recent increases for public higher education to
increase affordability and support services in Governor Healey’s and
both the House’s and Senate’s proposed budget are good first steps
in this direction. What is critical in the longer term is support for
the Cherish Act, and the Debt-Free Public Higher Education bill, which
would increase funding for all elements of public higher education,
further reduce the costs for students and move towards fully providing
the critical educational and support services that students need and
deserve while also helping to address the racial and economic
disparities in the state.

As discussions around higher education increasingly emphasize its
individual-level investment aspect, focusing on the improvement of
skills and income potential, it is crucial to acknowledge the
extensive body of research that consistently demonstrates the profound
societal benefits of a well-funded and high-quality higher education
system. Such investment goes beyond individual gains and extends to
wider societal benefits. Not only does it contribute to economic
growth, innovation, and competitiveness, but it also plays a pivotal
role in preserving democracy, fostering economic, racial, and gender
justice, and creating opportunities for more meaningful and prosperous
employment.

At the national level, many legal scholars
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have argued that President Biden has the ability to immediately issue
an executive order canceling all federally held student debt, granted
to him by the Higher Education Act of 1965. The argument is that he
could do this no matter what the outcomes are in the Supreme Court
cases related to debt relief – _Biden v. Nebraska_ or _US Department
of Education v. Brown_ – that will be decided any week now.
Meanwhile, Congressional Republicans certainly are not waiting on the
Supreme Court in order to pass legislation that would actively harm
student debt borrowers’ chances of future debt relief and force them
to pay back some of the relief that they have already received.
Additionally, there has been a student debt repayment pause for more
than three years now – for much of your time in college – and we
have seen that the government can in fact afford it, although
Republicans have now included a detrimental provision in the debt
ceiling deal that would codify an end to this repayment moratorium.

While it is crucial to address the pressing need for debt
cancellation, it is important to recognize that this measure alone
cannot fully resolve the underlying problem of the affordability
crisis and the persistent cycle of student debt burden. These issues
will continue to impact future generations of students unless
comprehensive steps are taken to tackle the root causes.

Please keep this in mind as you celebrate your achievement. Call or
write to your state representative or senator- you can find them here
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family, friends, and neighbors to do the same.  Even if they don’t
have family members or friends who will directly reap the benefits,
they will benefit from a richer, more diverse, stable, and
economically secure society. Urge them to become loud, vocal champions
for full student debt cancellation by President Biden, for the Cherish
Act, and for the Debt-Free Public Higher Education bill.
_Bahar Akman Imboden is the managing director of the Hildreth
Institute
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a Boston-based research and policy center dedicated to restoring the
promise of higher education as an engine of upward mobility for all.
Rich Levy is a professor of political science emeritus at Salem State
University and is active in two of Massachusetts’ public higher
education unions, the Massachusetts Teachers Association and the
Massachusetts State College Associations. Ian Rhodewalt is the field
organizer for the Western Massachusetts Area Labor Federation
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a coalition of more than 60 public and private sector unions._

* Public Education
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* Student Debt
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