OCCUPY STUDENT DEBT

Along with many of our allies such as DEFAULT: The Student Loan Documentary, ForgiveStudentLoanDebt.com, Backbone Campaign, Rebuild the Dream, Occupy Colleges, United States Student Association, Student Labor Action Project, Workhouse, Occupy Together and Edu Debtors Union, we’re organizing Occupy Graduation!  Are YOU ready?

I was the first and only child in my family to attend college. Without any financial guidance whatsoever, I was told that it was the key to unlocking my dreams. For, nobody could get a job without going far. So, I signed up for an Associates Degree.

I needed books, so I took out a loan for books. The friendly financial aid clerk handed me some paper work, I filled it out. It seemed very straightforward. My check arrived an I got books and other living expenses paid. This was great. Accomplishing my dream.

Then I find out that I am accepted as a transfer student to a 4 year BA. Wow! The Big Time! I worked hard. Why not? I accepted. But, sir, you will need to come up with a few thousand dollars. Sign here, sign there. It wasn’t like a mortgage, just a few slips a paper. It was a very covert process. But, I noticed that each loan the university would receive hundreds of dollars totaling thousands of dollars over the years. 

All of this loan business started around 2000-2001. We are now in 2012 and I owe 140,000 dollars from education obtained from public schools. I couldn’t work a full time job, so I had to borrow money for living expenses too. I even received a few scholarships, but they were small. 

I have a BA and an MS. I support a spouse and my parents. I owe $140,000 dollars. My monthly payments are $900 dollars a month. I can’t afford a home—barley make rent, groceries and transportation. I would gladly bargain for half. There should be a cap on our monthly payments. $900 is reasonable if you’re making $150,000 a year. But $40,000 and 50,000 dollar salaries today aren’t what they were ten years ago. 

Rent has gone up, gas has gone up, food, utilities, everything—all the life essential resources have increased, but salary stays the same. I can’t afford it.

Current balance, $175,000. Original Principle was $120,000. Administered by Sallie Mae and National Collegiate Trust (American Education Services) I imagine in the next few years it will be a quarter million.

I’ve never been able to touch the principle since i started paying. I struggled finding a job for 2 years after school, and my interest skyrocketed during forbearance and deferment.

Now i finally have a well paying job as a graphic designer, and i still struggle. My job is very demanding, i work long hours, and usually have to take side work to make due. I mostly live paycheck to paycheck, my monthly payments equal around another month’s rent, about $1200. I also suffered two great family losses in one year, had to move, and had some health problems. Which put a huge financial burden on my life. Sallie Mae and National Collegiate Trust have no sympathy or understanding for their customers. At this point i’m so far behind payments, I have no idea how i’m going to catch up. I get about eight phone calls a day harassing me for money i don’t have, threatening to sue me, and unwilling to work around my pay schedule or income. It’s humiliating, demoralizing, and disruptive. This disturbance and added stress makes it difficult to concentrate on my work, and takes a toll on my general well being. I’ve even had the collections agencies (who are owned by the lenders) make harassing phone calls to my office, extended family, and even friends.

At 19, had i known my education was going to cost me over a quarter million dollars, i would have made other arrangements. But the schools are payed by these lenders to sell you these loans, and they sell that dream of success really well. My only hope now is that my family and I remain in good health and hopefully the laws change soon.

Does YOUR representative support Hansen Clarke’s Student Loan Forgiveness Act of 2012 (H.R. 4170)??? 

http://www.change.org/petitions/rep-mike-mcintyre-support-the-student-loan-forgiveness-act-of-2012-hr-4170