President Biden’s promise on student loan forgiveness

The ongoing battle of student loans, whether they should be eliminated or fixed.

When President Joe Biden was campaigning for the 2020 election, one of his promises was to cancel student loan debt. As the national student loan average of recent college graduates reached a record high of $39,351 in 2021, found by the Education Data Initiative (EDI), many voters looked to Biden as a beacon of hope. 

Due to the pandemic causing financial hardships, President Biden announced on his first day in office that student loans will be put on pause until Jan. 31, 2022 to relieve and support borrowers across the nation. 

As the COVID-19 variant-omicron continued to raise cases, President Biden announced on Dec.  22, 2021 an extension on the pause on student loans until May 2022. Reported by EDI, nationwide, there are 43 million loan borrowers, who can expect their loan bill in April, at least 21 days before their payment is due. With the two year pause of student loans thousands, including Elizabeth Warren, are asking for a permanent pause on loans. 

Elizabeth Warren, U.S. senator from Massachusetts, is among one of the nation’s leading advocates for the elimination of student loans.

“…Making student debt relief permanent is the right thing to do,” Warren tweeted on Jan. 20, 2022. Student loan forgiveness has been an ongoing political debate on whether it should be eliminated or have fixed lower interest rates. 

 UWT students who are dependent on their families, are able to receive up to $138 thousand in federal aid over the course of their education, according to the student loans program chart published by University of Washington’s Financial Aid Office. Grants and scholarships as well as the Husky Promise are available to aid students with financial hardships. 

The Husky Promise assures each student a future, guaranteeing them full tuition and standard fees to be covered by grants and scholarships. They believe students, no matter their financial background, have the opportunity to achieve a UW degree. 

To qualify for the Husky Promise, one must be a Washington state resident pursuing a bachelor’s degree while maintaining satisfactory academic standing and while meeting criteria for the Pell grant program.

After leaving the university for six to nine months students can expect to receive billing payments over their loans, with President Biden in office, the Biden administration is promising to eliminate student loans for those who make less than $125 thousand a year, according to the White House official website.

“Forgive all undergraduate tuition-related federal student debt from two-year and four-year public colleges and universities,” are statements that can be found on the White House official website. 

With May coming up, students who are currently enrolled in college and universities will not be impacted by the Biden Administrations loan payments.