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Debtsmarts
@debtsmarts.bsky.social
We are a nonprofit, nonpartisan team working to minimize student loan debt and eliminate unmanageable student debt.
Living expenses are skyrocketing for students too--this is the rising cost of college even more than tuition.

hechingerreport.org/the-fastest-...
The fastest-growing college cost? It’s not tuition
A handful of colleges and universities are trying to address what has become — along with food — the fastest-growing cost of college: student housing.
hechingerreport.org
October 6, 2025 at 2:28 PM
New Report: The US is facing a skills shortage crisis. Without massive and immediate increases in educational attainment, 171 occupations will face skills shortages through at least 2032. The report: bit.ly/4oHclst
Falling Behind: How Skills Shortages Threaten Future Jobs - CEW Georgetown
The report explores the causes and magnitude of anticipated skills shortages through at least 2032. It also examines potential strategies to address impending skills shortages and mitigate their econo...
bit.ly
September 16, 2025 at 4:16 PM
Moving forward, access to funding for college and grad school will reflect family assets most, rather than GPA or potential. tcf.org/content/repo...
The FICO Factor: GOP Megabill Will Limit Who Gets to Access College
The Republican megabill recently passed by Congress and signed into law will have profound impacts on American life, including Americans’ pursuit of
tcf.org
July 23, 2025 at 4:32 PM
"Among borrowers who were required to make payments, nearly one in four student loan borrowers (23.7 percent) were behind on their student loans in the first quarter of 2025."

libertystreeteconomics.newyorkfed.org/2025/05/stud...
Student Loan Delinquencies Are Back, and Credit Scores Take a Tumble  - Liberty Street Economics
With the delinquency rate for student loans surging, the authors take a look at which borrowers are past due and how that affects their access to credit.
libertystreeteconomics.newyorkfed.org
May 13, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Emphasis is on "right now" because the pace of changes coming in every direction may create a whole new landscape. www.npr.org/2025/03/31/n...
6 things borrowers should know about federal student loans right now
NPR has spent the past few weeks catching up with student loan experts and asking the Trump administration for clarity on some of borrowers' biggest questions.
www.npr.org
April 2, 2025 at 7:44 PM
"Absent a lending program through the federal government, higher education would become nearly off-limits to students from low- to moderate-income backgrounds." www.thirdway.org/memo/privati...
Third Way
www.thirdway.org
April 2, 2025 at 6:57 PM
Do you know if you have private student loans? For private loans, get a free copy of your credit report here and make sure you are in contact with any entities listed for private student loans. They will know the options available.
www.annualcreditreport.com/index.action
Annual Credit Report.com - Home Page
ACR Home Page
www.annualcreditreport.com
March 19, 2025 at 10:29 PM
Amid all the other cuts and challenges, now this. A projected $2.7B shortfall in Pell Grants.

www.insidehighered.com/news/governm...
Projected Pell shortfall could diminish federal aid
The Pell Grant is facing a projected $2.7 billion budget shortfall, its first in over a decade. With the Education Department in turmoil and Trump slashing spending, access advocates worry cuts may be...
www.insidehighered.com
February 24, 2025 at 6:14 PM
"Twenty-five percent of U.S. adults who completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the 2024-2025 school year say the process was somewhat or very difficult." news.gallup.com/poll/655196/...
One in Four Applicants Had Difficulty Submitting FAFSA
The Lumina Foundation-Gallup 2025 State of Higher Education Study finds that 25% of adults had difficulty completing their Free Application for Federal Student Aid.
news.gallup.com
February 24, 2025 at 5:42 PM
Reposted by Debtsmarts
Lesley Stahl reports on President Trump’s efforts to halt the work and cut the funding of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, an enforcement agency that was created in response to the 2008 financial crisis. 60 Minutes, Sunday.
February 22, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Reposted by Debtsmarts
A federal judge just ordered the temporary unfreezing of funding, marking yet another wild moment in the last week. I shared a few thoughts on the freeze with the @chronicle.com.

I'm pooped.
January 28, 2025 at 10:06 PM
Reposted by Debtsmarts
BREAKING: The Department of Education has confirmed that the federal spending pause does *not* affect Pell grants or student loans. You will get the money. Story coming shortly. 1/2
January 28, 2025 at 4:39 PM
Student loan balances grew by $21 billion, and now stand at $1.61 trillion nationwide. www.newyorkfed.org/microeconomi...
Household Debt and Credit Report
Unique data and insight into the credit conditions and activity of U.S. households
www.newyorkfed.org
January 27, 2025 at 7:40 PM
Reposted by Debtsmarts
President Joe Biden said his administration is approving student loan relief for more than 150,000 borrowers who included those who attended schools that defrauded their students, those with total and permanent disabilities and public service workers reut.rs/4hcQkgq
Biden says he is approving student loan relief for over 150,000 borrowers
President Joe Biden said on Monday his administration is approving student loan relief for more than 150,000 borrowers who included those who attended schools that defrauded their students, those with total and permanent disabilities and public service workers.
reut.rs
January 13, 2025 at 4:44 PM
Reposted by Debtsmarts
In one of its final moves, the Biden administration is discharging $4.5 billion in student debt held by 261,000 people who attended Ashford University over an eleven-year period.
Biden-Harris Administration Announces Group Discharge for 261,000 Borrowers with Loans from Ashford University
The Biden-Harris Administration today announced the approval of a $4.5 billion group discharge for 261,000 borrowers who attended Ashford University from March 1, 2009, through April 30, 2020.
www.ed.gov
January 15, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Reposted by Debtsmarts
President Biden just announced his administration had approved student loan relief for more than 150,000 borrowers — bringing the total number of Americans who've had their student debt cancelled under Biden to more than 5 million.
January 13, 2025 at 7:30 PM
Reposted by Debtsmarts
For 25 years, the Sánchez Scholars program has been assisting first-generation Latinx students in the Madison area with financial needs who have a desire to pursue higher education.
Sánchez Scholars program celebrating 25 years of supporting Latinx scholars
The Madison area Latinx population has grown quite a bit over the last quarter century, and so has the Sánchez Scholars program which has been helping first-generation Latinx students with financial…
buff.ly
January 6, 2025 at 4:20 PM
FAFSA is the single most powerful step in getting financial aid for college. Luckily, College Goal Wisconsin has set up over 40 in-person and virtual free events this month and next to help students get it done.

#FAFSA
collegegoalwi.org
COLLEGE GOAL WISCONSIN
Free FAFSA Completion Events in Wisconsin
collegegoalwi.org
January 6, 2025 at 10:24 PM
Endless, convoluted litigation could result in inadvertent loan forgiveness because the courts have made it too complicated to administer anyone's loans.
#studentloan

harvardlawreview.org/blog/2024/11...
What the Student Debt Litigation Portends | Harvard Law Review
The quagmire created by litigation against President Biden’s student loan initiatives provides a preview, if anyone wanted one, of the potential effects of the Supreme Court’s recent decisions wea
harvardlawreview.org
November 20, 2024 at 3:39 PM