 Dear reader,
At The Hechinger Report, we’ve long focused on obstacles to college completion. But the findings of a recent investigation by Hechinger’s Meredith Kolodner surprised even us.
Turns out, some 16,000 students from the State University of New York have been taken to court since 2013 by the state attorney general for unpaid bills. Many ended up in default because they couldn’t make it to the state capitol in Albany to defend themselves in court, as the system required. One student we spoke with was just three credits short of graduation, and spent three years struggling to pay a settlement of $2,900 on a debt she didn’t believe she owed in the first place.
After Kolodner started asking questions, the AG's office said it intends to make changes to the system and begin filing lawsuits in counties other than Albany.
I also wanted to point out another must-read story this week, on the enormous disruptions students in New Orleans continue to experience from tropical storms and the pandemic. Columnist Andre Perry reminds us of this city’s heartbreak both past and ahead – even when schools reopen this fall, they may not be ready for students. We hope you all have more upbeat tales to share from school reopenings last month and this. As always, we love hearing from our readers.
Liz Willen, Editor
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