The Federal Reserve Bank of New York recently announced that the amount of debt reached $867 billion in the last quarter of 2011, according to its website. Some legislators are still trying to keep costs down and make sure students know there are alternative options out there.
Congressman Glenn “G.T.” Thompson, R-PA, said higher education is an important priority for him, as he is part of the education subcommittee in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Thompson said he supports Pell Grants and encourages students to look at non-traditional options when considering a post-secondary education. Thompson said that there isn’t enough emphasis on technical schools or community colleges, which would be more affordable than a four-year institution.
“You need to put as many options on the table as possible,” he said.
Mallory Reed, president of the Penn State College Democrats said young people need to know what opportunities exist and they need to be educated. There has been a trend of abandonment of pre K-12 education in Pennsylvania, Reed (senior-political science) said, and there should be a qualified work force in all areas of employment, not just sectors that require extensive training.
In Pennsylvania, the average student loan debt is $44,000, according to the New York Reserve’s statistics, while the national average is $35,900.
Penn State is one of the most expensive public universities in the country, and is the highest average student debt producer out of other Big Ten schools, coming in at $31,133.
Josh Crawford, chair of the Penn State College Republicans, said student loan debt is like a bubble, ready to pop just like the housing bubble did in 2007.
Crawford (senior-crime, law and justice) said because everyone owes too much money, the bubble is growing — but when it will pop, no one knows.
“The costs will have to drop, and when they do, things will flatten out and will become more stabilized,” he said.
Thompson said the issue of student debt is an important one that needs to be addressed, though he is not sure if anything concerning student loans will be voted on this year.