In January 2005, "Generation Debt" began appearing as a biweekly column in the Voice. I've been covering all kinds of issues affecting young people's economic lives, from military recruitment of working-class kids, to student loan consolidation, to the right to an education for young mothers on welfare, to Russell Simmons' foray into "phat" banking and tax planning.
You can find links to all the past columns here:
January 2005:
No Trust Fund? Try Food Stamps
Down and out in Brooklyn, young artists turn to public assistance
Feeling a Draft?
Poor kids of color fight the Pentagon
February 2005:
Conversation Kills
Gray-haired pols keep yammering about Social Security, but it's young people who need to be heard
Borrow More Now! Pay More Later!
Bush's big plan for sticking it to us again
March 2005:
The Blue-Blood Revolution
A movement to help the poorest students grows—at the Ivies
Kids in the Thrall
You make chump change. And Congress likes it that way.
April 2005
Greed Aid
Big banks do billions in student loans—and that means less money for you
Russell Simmons, Tax Man
Hip-hop mogul helps young and broke get refunds—for a price
Stress Test
Smarty grads find easy money in SAT prep for wealthy, nerved-up kids
May 2005
Poor Students, Fast Learners
Welfare moms fight for a right they have—to stay in school.
I Was a Really Young Real Estate Mogul
Can't afford rent? Buy instead—but carefully
June 2005
High Interest in Low Interest
Student borrowers scramble to beat a deadline for cheap rates
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Thank you for tackling the Student Loan issue! I have yet to finish my bachelor's degree, primarily due to financial constraints, and have experienced TWO eras of the student loan. The first was fairly easy and simply filled out the grants I got from my school and the government. I paid it off with minimal difficulties, even working at one of those non-degree jobs. The second time around, about 12 years ago was a different story! The grant funds had shrunk to a laughably-inadequate amount and I was told by the financial aid counselor that, unless I took out a loan, they would not consider me willing to "take the responsibility of contributing to my costs." BTW, I was pushing 40 and working two jobs to support myself. Responsibility? Excuse me? It was made clear to me that, without taking out a loan, I could kiss any other financial aid goodbye! So I did. I finally finished paying off what it cost me to complete 2 years in a second-rate community college. Happily, I am now "comfortable" enough to pay my own tuition and am back at it...but it makes me mad to think how much richer my life til now would have been had I had the credentials and training to go after better jobs. The whole state of higher education in this county is a disgrace, anyway. We don't offer EDUCATION, for the most part, just advanced vocational training, and, after knocking around classes this long, I can tell you that we should NOT be offering EVERYBODY a college degree. NOT EVERYBODY is suited for this level of study. No country on earth sends EVERYBODY to university and it works very well for them. Certainly better than the half-baked system we have here, that turns out people who can run a computer, but can't name a Mozart opera or an American poet!
do you realize that, at the top of your page, is an ad offering "great rates on student loans?"
Post a Comment