What is it to be Young, Gifted, & Broke?
I have a story that I want to tell you guys. In my opinion this experience I had had opened my eyes a little bit more to the horrors of what a student loan debt can do to you. I also came to a realization of how lucky I was to be blessed with scholarships throughout school. So, one day I was just scrolling through my Instagram, and I came across this flyer that was looking for people to be in the audience for a taped TV show. I was honestly intrigued, plus I was free that day so there was no reason why I wouldn’t want to participate. I was honestly and truly very excited about being able to be a part of the taping of Angela Rye Presents Young, Gifted, and Broke: Our student loan crisis.
On September 9thI went to an audience casting for the town hall on BET called Young, Gifted, & Broke. The main reason behind this event was to discuss the topics of the student loan crisis in the USA. As someone who has been blessed to be able to receive full ride athletic scholarships all throughout me colligate career, I am one of the lucky ones to graduate without any loan debt. On the other hand, this past summer I decided to finish my degree abroad in Barcelona, Spain. For that to happen I had to save, raise, and find a lot of scholarships. I decided not to take out any loans for this venture. I wanted to try doing it for myself and plus I always hear how loans can be bad for you. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to finish paying off my study abroad bill on time. Which means now I am being charged late fees with interest included. As someone paying for this all on her own without any constant help it feels helpless some days. I can’t give up though, unlike some others I am only $550 in debt. The thing is that can go up any day but compared to the other 45 million out there my number is childish.
I find it so dishearten that people have to run to loans because of how much the cost to live and just get a basic education has gone up. It wouldn’t be a problem if the wages reflected the inflation that we are continuously seeing. It was said fafsa used to be able to cover up to 2/3 of your education and cost to live while in school. Now it barely covers 1/3! There is a saying that goes a little bit like this… “When America catches a cold, blacks get ammonia.” Which in these cases are true, the African American people here are suffering the worst. I can promise you the Paris Hilton’s and Kardashian don’t have these problems, so they don’t have any idea of the things we experience.
As Congresswoman Ilhan Omar came out onto the stage I got excited; I try to keep myself always aware of what’s going on in the world and I have taken a liking to the way she approaches things. As she was speaking on the student loan debt crisis, she said something that stuck out a bit. “Get an education to bump start life.” In my opinion this statement is more of a double edge sword than anything else. In this day it cost so much to just to survive; the cost of living, and education are continuously increasing. So, my question is if you are barely surviving with the job you have now. How are you supposed to fund yourself through school? Especially if FAFSA thinks that’s your parents make too much for you to be eligible to receive any money. It’s almost like I found the solution but there are traps lined out the entire way there.
Also, on stage with Congresswoman Ilhan Omar was best-selling author Michael Arceneaux. While on stage he talked about his experience when he was a student and had to deal with student loans. He talks about being able to take full responsibility to the situation you are in but to not feel like you are stuck in that situation. It is hard because you are always going to have that depressing number weighing over you but try not to let it stop you from living. As he continues speaking on how debt can start to affect you on a spiritual level. It makes you wonder “Why am I not allowed to dream of a life like the Cosbies.” Michael also explains how the private loan sector tries to target minorities, immigrants, and poor folk. Once you take a private loan you have to pay that money back including the outrageous interest prices. Also, something to remember; private loans don’t negotiate.
As Congresswoman Ilhan Omar continued speaking she mentions a debt cancelation legislation that she and her team is currently working on. The congresswoman states that it’s for both the private and public education sectors, and it has a 10-year goal. The main emphasis was that it wasn’t going to cost the American people. There would be small money transactions on Wall St. The congresswoman said something after… “We the American people had the chance to bail out Wall St. Now Wall St. is going to bail the U.S out.” As she said those words you could hear a sea of applause.
As Michael Arceneaux left off stage, we got a new guest by the name of Danielle Douglas Gabriel who works for the Washington Post. While on stage she mostly talked about the state’s disinvestment. As the amount of money that the school is receiving lowers, they are forced to raise the school’s tuition. She put an emphasis on how the state is not doing its job with keeping up with the times. As time goes on living and education seems to get more and more expensive. She also mentions how this isn’t a rich person problem, it’s the poor and middle class that are receiving the worst treatment.
As Congresswoman Ilhan Omar continues speaking on her views, she states something about College for all. It is a plan to make public college tuition free. She makes the argument that education is a public good, and that we the people need to invest in our education. Which are somethings that I agree with; why can there be public school k-12 that you attend for free but a public university you have to pay for. The congresswoman emphasizes that higher education is a part of the basic need for a pathway to a better life. Which is something that I agree with! Now comes the time we need to start making solutions because it is continuously getting harder to be able to get a basic education.
This time on stage with Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, was Congresswoman Jahana Hayes. I have a bit of a soft spot for Congresswoman Hayes because it’s the same last name of my great grandmother. Whenever she speaks, I try to listen to hear what her opinion may be. She starts off her discussion talking about predatory lenders. She also gives us a definition; then informed us of how predatory lenders will stick you with high interest rates. A prime example of a predatory lenders are private universities that will pull students to the side and say they you don’t have enough to cover your classes. So, you will either have to drop out all of your classes and apply for this scholarship. The thing is that what you just signed up for was not a scholarship but a loan they manipulated you into applying for.
As we get back to Congresswoman Ilhan Omar she gives us a little scoop on another policy that her and her team is currently working on. It is called the Pell Grant Restitution Act. This a big policy that could help change the course of a lot of student’s life. The unfortunate part is that your loans will be forgiven. (Well that’s not the unfortunate part.) Your Pell-grant won’t be restored though. I feel as though this is almost a happy even for those who are plagued by their student loan debt, but there are things that could make this bill even better. I wasn’t the only one who thought that though Congresswoman Hayes said more should be done as well.
She states that financial literacy is a subject that should be required, but as of now it isn’t. Every time someone brings it up either people don’t know anything or know too little. Then you a have the folk who think that it’s all up to you to learn. Then also no one in the government has the job the create the lesson. In my opinion first the government should make a financial literacy class mandatory. If a home-ec cooking class can be mandatory, why not ones that will help you plan a better future for yourself. When Congresswoman Hayes said the you have to come with all of it to get an education. I felt that in my soul, because if you don’t have it all how are you going to get a good education. Now your mind is taken elsewhere because you have to worry about how you are going to pay for school because you can’t just go. She also states, how we students shouldn’t have to keep looking over our shoulders at school for debt that could be trailing behind. The congresswoman also stated how we should refinance loans 3.78% and up, and also that the private loans should be able to be refinanced. Also, she puts great emphasis on this part; that the government should protect students from predatory lenders.
The next two guest that came out to hang out with us were Congressman Bobby Scott and the President of Howard University Dr. Wayne Fredrick. Dr. Fredrick was asked how Howard was setting the tone for other private schools. Dr. Fredricks answer was that their tuition is 40% less than other private institutions. Which was more of a shock to me because I have friends who went to Howard and would complain about how expensive the school was. On the other hand, Congressman Scott spoke about the income-based repayment plan. The income-based repayment plan sets your monthly student loan payment at an amount that is intended to be affordable based on your income and family size. Also, if you work the public sector for a certain amount of time your debt is forgiven. He explains how the Department of Education is slacking when it comes to fulfilling the terms of this plan, nor are they giving out the correct information to tell you which plan that you need to be on.
As he explains how Betsy DeVos doesn’t care about the American people’s education; he also lets us know that out of the number of people that fulfilled their requirements and should have their debt removed 99.5% were denied. This was something that was mind blowing to me, the next year things didn’t go any better, 99% were denied. So, what was the problem? It’s not money because Congressman Scott states that they sent over more than enough money, so now they are about to be under investigation to see what is happening. Congressman Scott also speaks on how colleges are charging too high of a tuition, also that Pell Grants need to be increased. They used to cover up to 75% now they barely cover 30%. He also states that the federal government should reduce the loan interest rate, because at this point the government is just deciding to make money off of our backs.
Now our very last guest was Jessica Brown the founder, and CEO of collegegirl.com. She came out and gave us three great tips about school. Tip number one was the make sure that you do your research for the scholarships that you want. There are many out there, you just need to do the research. Tip number two was that you need to make sure you follow up and have a relationship with your financial aid office. Then lastly tip number three was to only borrow what you need, do not try to take out a bigger loan for the refund check because you are going to have to pay that money right back plus interest.
Being able to be a part of a great town hall event like this has helped me broaden my scope of the student loan debt crisis. I was able to learn so much knowledge that I can share with other who need it more than me. I can clearly see that this isn’t a problem that will be swept under the rug because our future depends on it. We have to make sure that even if we are going through the struggle now, that in the future when it’s our siblings or kids turn that they won’t have to go through the same problems we did. When they say knowledge is power, it truly means something. You can have all the knowledge in the worlds and be the only successful person, but when you are knowledgeable and able to assist those around you, you not only bring yourself up but the community around you. You are creating a better and brighter future and that’s my plan. So, for all of you out there suffering with this student loan debt crisis you are not alone, and you will get through it.
If you have any tips, suggestions, or a story you want to share about your experience feel free to comment or message me.
