A Times op-ed observes:
[T]wo weeks ago, the Education Department released a trove of new data suggesting that the system is failing and that, at some colleges, the saddling of students with loans they cannot afford to pay down is far more dire than anyone knew.
The loan crisis hits hardest at colleges enrolling large numbers of students from low-income backgrounds. These undergraduates have to borrow for college, then often have difficulty finding well-paying jobs after graduation — if they graduate at all.
Not only are too many borrowers in default, but even more are in "nonrepayment" status — meaning that they are able to avoiding having to pay their loans right now (for instance, because of economic hardship), but continuing to rack up interest charges that will dog them into the future.
Read the whole piece here.
