Senate votes to kill $400 billion student loan handout, sets up fifth Biden veto

I recall that at the time I was in school 60% of the graduates of the prestigious Smith College (one of the seven sisters-the female counterparts to the Ivies before the Ivies all went co-ed) majored in ART HISTORY-which we used to joke was a pre-wed major that led to the MRS. degree. Good for wives of corporate executives I suppose but not particularly useful for getting a job that pays well on its own. Many of those women would have been better off learning how to work on HVAC or accounting

 

Right now, I could go to school in New Mexico for $20k per year. Pell grant would take that down to about $14k. A work study would bring that down to $10k. It's fairly easy to get a job for the summer and make at least $5k. That would mean you have a $20k loan at graduation. Don't major in anything stupid and that's paid off quickly. And tuition is free if you're a NM graduating senior
here thanks to the lottery.

I'm just saying that where there's a will, there's a way.

 

Three weeks ago, I was looking for a construction coordinator/Assistant to help with me four projects near Arizona State University in Tucson, and I had hundreds of applicants send me resumes. No experience in construction necessary. They just need to relay information from the contractor, organize the workflow, deal with the owners, and be my eyes and ears. They'd get a free apartment in one of the buildings near ASU, 65k salary plus bonuses per project completed (+100k), and the ability to work from home, as well as go to school. I eventually hired a young bilingual woman with a child, but not before going through a dozen ASU students via phone and in-person interviews. They'd make these demands or complain about working weekends. I floated the idea of taking business and construction courses as electives in school, and one of the kids literally said to me that it didn't fit their major. It was hilarious. They were intimidated by one of the cushiest jobs. I couldn't imagine passing up that opportunity at 19-20 years old. I worked as an EMT as soon as I turned 18 to pay for school. There was always time to party.

The fact is that most college kids don't want serious jobs for the summer. Most of them don't even want to take the menial job, which is pretty much the only position anyone can get right now. Their parents are paying for their apartments, and the government is sending them to school so they can party. That was the number one reason that ASU students gave me for attending college. Such a waste of money. These same people will vote for loan forgiveness so the hard-working mother I hired with her high school education has to give them part of her bonus.

 

Why should mostly upper middle class adults with masters degrees force everyone else to pay their VOLUNTARY loans. Don’t people understand where the vast majority of student debt is?

I already paid off MY loans. My children are all prepaid. Why should I pay for loans others voluntarily took without any plan to pay THEIR debt? I sacrificed and saved and invested to pay for myself and my kids. Why should the idiots, who didn’t get a free ride? And if you have a masters degree and are still unemployed, YES, you are an idiot. Bad life decisions. Sorry.

Essentially, why should the plumber who went to trade school pay for a Masters in Gender studies of the unemployed MORON?

Who are we rewarding? It’s just more passing the Buck. Passing the blame. NOT taking responsibility.

 

The main point is that there isn't any question that the cost of college is a serious deterrent for high school kids.

You're ignoring college living expenses, books and other charges. It's not just tuition.

Not everyone gets a Pell grant.

Making $5k over the summer may be possible, but you have to live during those months.

High school graduation does not give a kid financial know-how for forming and executing a perfect and austere budget.

 

That $20k does include room and board. Maybe they have to get an internship for a semester to make ends meet. That's valuable also. Also, high school should teach kids how to manage their money. But, there is nothing stopping parents from doing that. I'm sorry if you think that it absolutely has to be expensive but it doesn't. You just might not be going to a tier 1 school. Life is full of choices.

 

University of New Mexico lists cost of attendance as $27k/year for in state, and $50.4K for out of state. This doesn't include a range of fees the school charges for specific courses of study and school activities.

There are lots of ways we could improve k-12.

The point is whether the cost of higher education is an issue that is slowing too many from academic education (including science and engineering).

I think we need to be looking at that more directly rather than guessing what high school kids could possibly do in terms of funding.

 

Yes, but there are other choices in the state. Here is the cost of one of the others and there is two others that are similar:

 

Again, the issue is whether that price represents a barrier for students who are capable of and want a 4 year degree.

 

And I would say that it doesn't.