Education Secretary Miguel Cardona Begins to Rectify Injustice in Department’s College Loan Program | janresseger

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona Begins to Rectify Injustice in Department’s College Loan Program | janresseger

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona Begins to Rectify Injustice in Department’s College Loan Program

Last Thursday, March 18, 2021, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona rescinded a policy devised by his predecessor, Betsy DeVos, for processing complaints by students who claimed to have been defrauded by unscrupulous for-profit colleges and trade schools. DeVos’s policy denied debt relief for thousands of students whose complaints were not carefully or fairly considered.

The U.S. Department of Education manages an enormous higher education loan program which has been criticized by borrowers and members of Congress alike—all concerned that under former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, student borrowers were left unprotected after for-profit colleges and trade schools induced them to take out big loans for shoddy education programs. Because these institutions are highly dependent on federal student loans to cover their operating expenses, they too frequently prey on students and military veterans with fraudulent advertising about the nature and quality of the programs to which they lure students. A federal rule called “the borrower defense to repayment” is supposed to protect students by cancelling their student loans when the students can prove the schools’ promises were fraudulent.

The Washington Post‘s Danielle Douglas-Gabriel explains the significance of Cardona’s action last week: “About 72,000 people will have their federal loans canceled after Education CONTINUE READING: Education Secretary Miguel Cardona Begins to Rectify Injustice in Department’s College Loan Program | janresseger

Actions Last Week Extend the Student Loan Debt Cliff and Protect DACA | janresseger

Actions Last Week Extend the Student Loan Debt Cliff and Protect DACA | janresseger

Actions Last Week Extend the Student Loan Debt Cliff and Protect DACA

There is a lot to worry about right now—an unhinged President who has given up governing, a divided Congress, a raging pandemic, and, so far at least, Congressional failure to pass an economic relief bill as the COVID-19 recession intensifies.

Two developments last week should, however, be seen as hopeful. Both will protect vulnerable young people through the Presidential transition and into the Biden administration, when it is expected that policies will be revised.

Student Loan Debt Cliff Extended until January 31st to Protect 41 Million Borrowers

Last Friday, Betsy DeVos extended a COVID-19 moratorium on the collection of student loan payments, a moratorium that had been expected to expire on New Years Eve. The moratorium on student loan payments began with the CARES Act and last summer had been extended by President Trump’s executive order until December 31.

Politico‘s Michael Stratford reports: “The Trump administration on Friday granted an extra month of student loan relief to the 41 million Americans who have been benefiting from a freeze on monthly payments and interest that was set to expire at the end of the year. The relief was set to expire on Dec. 31, but will now end on January 31. The last-minute extension averts what could have been a potentially chaotic resumption of payments just weeks before President-elect Joe Biden takes office…  Roughly 33 million of those borrowers have had their payments paused, and the Education Department has stopped seeking to collect from the 8 million other borrowers who were in default.”

Back in November, Stratford warned about the chaos that would happen in January if the CONTINUE READING: Actions Last Week Extend the Student Loan Debt Cliff and Protect DACA | janresseger

The “insidious” Betsy DeVos. But what will the Democrats do about student loan debt? – Fred Klonsky

The “insidious” Betsy DeVos. But what will the Democrats do about student loan debt? – Fred Klonsky

THE “INSIDIOUS” BETSY DEVOS. BUT WHAT WILL THE DEMOCRATS DO ABOUT STUDENT LOAN DEBT?

The insidious Betsy and Dick DeVos.

Departing Education Secretary Betsy DeVos blasted student debt forgiveness in what was likely her last major policy speech, calling proposals like free college and the cancellation of student loan debt “truly insidious.”

“We’ve heard shrill calls to cancel, to forgive, to make it all free. Any innocuous label out there can’t obfuscate what it really is: wrong.”

DeVos called it, “The truly insidious notion of government gift giving.”

Well, she would know something about government gift giving.

CNBC reported:

Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos and her family are among the groups that have seen an income boon of millions through their own investments since Trump’s tax reform plan was signed, CONTINUE READING: 

The “insidious” Betsy DeVos. But what will the Democrats do about student loan debt? – Fred Klonsky

Navient and AFT members, nationwide class agree to settle loan forgiveness suit - The Highland County Press

Navient and AFT members, nationwide class agree to settle loan forgiveness suit - The Highland County Press

Navient and AFT members, nationwide class agree to settle loan forgiveness suit

Loan servicing company Navient Solutions LLC has agreed to enhance its call center practices as part of a multipronged settlement preliminarily approved by a federal judge, in a putative nationwide class action brought by members of the American Federation of Teachers.

On June 19, Judge Denise L. Cote of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York gave preliminary approval to the terms of the settlement. Under the settlement, Navient agrees to enhance its internal practices and policies, including training customer service agents to take additional steps to identify borrowers potentially eligible for relief under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program and provide them with information about the program and how to qualify.

AFT members brought the suit in October 2018, challenging Navient’s practices with respect to advising federal student loan borrowers about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, a federal government relief program that forgives the remaining balance on certain public service workers’ federal student loans after 10 years of making qualifying payments. The proposed class consisted of teachers, nurses, first responders, school support staff, higher education faculty and social workers who have dedicated their lives to helping others.

AFT President Randi Weingarten hailed the settlement as great news for borrowers hoping to access PSLF:

“This exceptional agreement is a big step forward that will help millions of borrowers get the relief they need — and were promised by the federal government — by enhancing the resources available to them through their loan servicer. Developed by Navient with input from our members, these enhanced practices will assist public service workers on their journey to realize the federal government’s bipartisan promise of public service loan forgiveness.

“The agreement is a good illustration of how borrowers and servicers can work together for the benefit of both parties. It acknowledges that PSLF is a vital program for many graduates who forgo larger salaries in the corporate sector to serve the public instead. The student debt crisis has impacted an entire generation and put the promise of higher education further and further out of reach. This settlement is an important part of combating that crisis.”

Under the settlement, Navient will hold a stakeholder meeting with the 10 plaintiffs to hear firsthand about their challenges with PSLF and will use that feedback in implementing the agreed-upon practice enhancements.

The agreement requires Navient to train its customer service representatives on these new practices, which they will use when CONTINUE READING: Navient and AFT members, nationwide class agree to settle loan forgiveness suit - The Highland County Press