Kentuckians collectively owe more than $20 million in student loan debt, and a new informal survey sheds light on how high student loan payments are affecting the lives of borrowers across the Commonwealth.

Research from the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy found nearly one in five inhabitants have student debt, including 20,000 people at retirement age or close to retirement age.

Ashley Spalding, director of research at the Centre, said the situation is preventing many people from buying a home, starting a business or accessing health care.

“Wages aren’t going up that much, and the cost of college is skyrocketing, and interest rates have been high on those loans,” Spalding explained.

The US Department of Education estimates over the past year that it has forgiven more than $17 billion in debt for more than 700,000 borrowers. The Biden administration’s pause on student loan repayments is set to expire on August 31. Experts said it’s still unclear whether the break will be extended into the fall.

Louisville resident Celine Mutuyemaria said she currently has more than $100,000 in student loan debt and said her financial situation is affecting her mental health.

“It affects me in many ways,” Mutuyemaria stressed. “I actually have a lot of anxiety about if and when student loan repayments will resume.”

She added that her student loans are negatively affecting her credit rating, which is a hindrance to her dream of owning a home.

“I think home ownership seems really out of my sight right now because of the burden of my student loans,” Mutuyemaria lamented.

The White House too recently announced it would be cancel student loans of all former Corinthian Colleges students, after investigations found the for-profit colleges defrauded students, the largest loan release by the federal government to date.

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A new investigation of 28,000 high school students, more than one in four changed their life plans during the pandemic.

In 2019, 25% of students planned to attend a two-year college; now down to 19%.

Jennifer Wilka, executive director of YouthTruth, a San Francisco-based nonprofit that specializes in student surveys, said the disruption was more pronounced for certain groups.

“There were many, many more differences for certain groups of students,” Wilka reported. “Including Hispanic or Latinx students, Black or African American students, LGBTQ+ boys, and students attending very poor schools.”

Compared to 2019, fewer children said they wanted to go to community college, more LGBTQ+ students said they were considering dropping out, and more seniors said they were unsure about their next move. . The survey found that financial stress played an important role, as did battles with anxiety and depression.

Wilka pointed out that many students are overwhelmed with grief and struggling to adjust to distance learning.

“They feel like time has stood still,” Wilka explained. “They’ve lost their study skills, a lot of them have lost their focus, their motivation, you know, they’ve lost, lost people they cared about. So those are absolutely trends that are coming out loud and clear. .”

The survey found that fewer kids are connecting with school counselors these days to talk about college or financial aid. Wilka would like states to better fund schools, so they can bolster their counseling staff and provide more targeted interventions for groups of students who are struggling to get back on track.

Support for this report was provided by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

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Maine education officials are encouraging residents who never graduated from high school to return to adult education and complete the High school equivalency test (HiSET).

Maine has used the HiSET since 2014. It is made up of five sections: reading, writing, math, science, and social studies.

Joe Fagnant, principal of Houlton/Hodgdon Adult and Community Education, said it has become more difficult in recent years to get a well-paying job without a high school diploma.

“We know it will open so many more opportunities and so many more doors,” Fagnant said. “Including the new deal the community college system has made to offer free community college for graduates of the class of 2020, ’21, ’22 and ’23.”

He noted that this includes adult learners who complete the HiSET. Maine has more than 60 adult education programs, and as of 2020, more than 1,700 Mainers have taken HiSET. Fagnant noted that there is no cost for the test or prep classes, and those who may have taken or passed part of the exam can come back later to complete it.

Fagnant added that the pay difference for an entry-level job can be drastically different depending on the education level of the workers. He pointed out that some companies require a high school diploma but struggle to find applicants, so they work with adult education to find people who would be a good fit and help them graduate.

“The labor market has also changed in the last two years because of COVID and the pandemic, where people are paying higher wages,” Fagnant acknowledged. “But with that, you also have more competition to find a quality candidate.”

He pointed out that there are many directions students can take with those two years of community college, including directly into the job market, or they can transfer the credits and work toward a bachelor’s degree.

Studies have shown at age 35, workers with a bachelor’s degree are twice as likely to have a good job as those with only a high school diploma.

Support for this report was provided by Lumina Foundation.

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North Dakota is among the top five states for college affordability. That ranking features in a new national report, and higher education officials say there’s still a lot of work to be done to attract and retain students.

North Dakota landed second on the website dealA College Accessibility List. In addition to reasonable tuition fees at public and private institutions in the state, the low cost of living for students was cited as another factor.

Lisa Johnson — vice chancellor for academic and student affairs for the University System of North Dakota — said with schools across the country facing enrollment issues, they can’t let these rankings be their only selling point.

“Looking at kind of non-traditional populations of older adults,” Johnson said. “So how do you position yourself by looking online? Hybrid-type teaching? Crash courses?”

Reflect national trends, some schools in North Dakota have seen declining enrollment in recent years. However, the losses are not as pronounced compared to colleges and universities in other states.

last fall, the University of North Dakota reported its highest total enrollment since 2018.

Johnson acknowledged that many families are facing increased economic pressure these days, and that requires extra measures to help meet basic needs so students don’t have to lose sight of their college careers.

“A number of our campuses have organized pantries,” Johnson said. “Some of these guys started with student organizations.”

North Dakota State University has a Food Insecurity Task Forceand a 2020 survey showed that more than one in three NDSU students had experienced food insecurity.

Meanwhile, Johnson said they remain focused on the education value students pay for, with a focus on campuses needing to demonstrate demand for new programs.

Support for this report was provided by Lumina Foundation.

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