Students Grapple With Questions About the New Student Debt Forgiveness Plan

“I don’t really understand what it is,” said Olivia Limnex. “Students right now who are graduating with student debt, are they going to have this loan forgiveness ten years after they graduate, or will it be given to them right away?”

“I don’t know if you have to be making a specific amount of money for it to apply to you,” said Danika Schels. “I got a lot of student loans. My fiancé did not. Would my student loan forgiveness be just for me, or would they be getting any of it?”

“I’m not sure how to access any information on it,” said Luis Portillo.

“I don’t know when it’s rolling out,” said Grace Fuchet.

“I only heard about it from social media,” said Al Mineau.

Students at UW-Milwaukee are questioning how the new federal Student Loan Forgiveness plan will impact them, and the school has yet to send out information to students on just how and when the Biden administration’s program will help them.

“I haven’t heard anyone from the school talk about it,” Fuchet said. “The only thing I’ve heard is from the POTUS account.”

Sue Minzlaff, Director at the Student Financial Service Center, says students haven’t heard about the debt forgiveness plan from UWM because they will be receiving communications from their loan servicers and the Department of Education.

“We do not have any other information besides what they have shared with students,” Minzlaff said, referring to the Federal Student Aid website.

Questions from students range from the logistics of the forgiveness plan to the rollout timeline. Students also wonder who will be eligible to apply.

When President Biden announced plans for debt forgiveness back in August, people had mixed reactions online. It was a controversial decision politically for the President.

It’s a conversation UWM faculty and students have been having for years. The Milwaukee university has the highest student debt in the UW System, and  the median student debt amongst people who graduate currently sits at $23,948.

“I’m first generation and I have younger siblings, so for me having to take on some loans is how I was going to have to do college,” said Luis Portillo. “So, I knew choosing college meant having a lot of loans taken out and that would be something I would have to carry with me for a while.”

Michael Madouse, senior financial aid Advisor at UWM, says this is a conversation he has with a lot of families of potential students.

“Loan forgiveness is great, but what about just fixing the issue that people can’t afford school,” Madouse said.

A lot of UWM students are confronting the stress of paying of loans as they look ahead to graduation. Even if they’re not paying for college themselves, the financial burden on family members affects them too.

“My parents pay for both me and my sister but we both don’t get good financial aid so it’s kind of hard for my parents,” said Megan Holzhauer. “It’s stressful because I feel like I have to put in 100% effort 24/7. I have a lot of burdens because of it. So, I mean I’m lucky in a way but it’s still stressful.”

Fuchet, who is financially responsible for her education, knows how the pressure of paying off loans will affect her career experiences.

“It’s something I think about, especially with unpaid internships,” Fuchet said. “Because if your parents are paying for all your school you don’t have to worry about paying any of that and you can have more opportunities. Coming out of school debt free obviously puts you ahead of your coworkers and your peers.”

Limnex thinks the same way about her future career.

“You wanna look at the jobs that you’ll be happy in, and you’ll be successful in, but also the ones you’ll make the most money because the thought of student debt is always in the back of your mind,” Limnex said. “That you have to pay those off before you can actually start your real life and be successful.”

Oscar Lopez knows how tough it can be to work during school, especially with student debt looming over students.

“Sometimes it affects the hours that you work during a school week and sometimes you don’t get time to do assignments because of that,” Lopez said.

“I don’t want to be like some of our parents, grandparents who are in their 50s, 60s, 70s still paying off their student loans,” Schels said.

Other schools in the University of Wisconsin system are working on how to inform their students on the debt relief plan. UW-Madison has a link on their Office of Student Financial Aid website to direct students who are looking to learn more. Terry Micks, the loans program coordinator at UW- La Crosse, says their website had a link to information a few weeks ago but it was taken down. They are looking for more ways to educate their students as more
information comes out about the federal program. Micks believes they will begin an “aggressive campaign” now that students are beginning to apply.

Both Madouse and Minzlaff recommend students go to the federal student aid website to get more information or to keep up with updates about the loan forgiveness plan. On the website,
you can navigate to find a link to sign up for notifications on the latest with the application. Minzlaff also said the Student Financial Service Center is looking to post information soon about the loan forgiveness plan so students can be directed to more information from the school’s
site.

Minzlaff said that once the school has more information, her department is looking to send out informational emails. Madouse said that once the application is open, the Department of Financial Aid would be able to assist students in completing that form.