Louisiana borrowers have about $35,000 in federal student loan debt on average
The average Louisiana borrower has around $35,172 in federal student loan debt, according to data from the U.S. Department of Education, with the total owed by Louisiana residents nearing $23 billion.
In August, the White House announced President Joe Biden’s plan to cancel up to $10,000 in student debt for most borrowers and up to $20,000 for Pell Grant recipients. The program is expected to provide debt relief for more than 600,000 Louisiana borrowers – accounting for 40% of all Louisiana adults who attended college.
Four out of every five students in the classes of 2016 and 2017 at Louisiana’s four-year colleges had a federal student loan on average, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Department of Education. The data on the 2016 and 2017 cohorts is the most recent provided by the department's College Scorecard. Around two-thirds of students in those classes received Pell Grants, which are awarded to students who show exceptional need.
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The loan forgiveness program could have a significant impact on Louisiana’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities – or HBCUs. Among Louisiana’s four-year schools, HBCUs make up four of the top 10 schools with the highest percentage of federal loan recipients, as well as six of the top 10 spots for Pell Grants.
Grambling State University, an HBCU near Ruston, had the highest percentage of federal loan recipients with around 96.8%. The school ranked second in Pell Grant percentage with 88.9% behind Remington College in Shreveport.
Dillard University, Southern University, and the Southern University Law Center were in the top 10 for both federal loan recipients and Pell Grants. Xavier University was in the top 10 for Pell Grant recipients.
For Louisiana’s two-year colleges, around 71.9% of students in the classes of 2016 and 2017 had federal loans, and around 84.2% had Pell Grants. The average loan debt for these students was around $8,500, and the average debt was about $8,700 for Pell Grant recipients.
Across all Louisiana colleges – including four-year, two-year and less than two-year programs – borrowers often had significant issues keeping up with payments.
A little more than one of every 10 students that took out a federal loan to attend a college in Louisiana defaulted on a student loan within three years of entering repayment, according to federal data.
Around 12.2% of borrowers in the class of 2018 across all Louisiana colleges defaulted on a federal loan by 2020, according to the data. The default rate for four-year colleges was around 7.6%, while two-year colleges had a rate of 13.6%.
More:Here's what Biden's student loan relief plan means for Louisiana borrowers
At 17 of the 37 four-year colleges in Louisiana, the average loan amount upon leaving the school was more than 30% of the average earnings 10 years after graduation, according to the data. Two colleges – Grambling and Dillard – had average federal loan debt that was greater than 70% of the average earnings after 10 years.
Louisiana’s politicians have largely been split along party lines on loan forgiveness. U.S. Sens. Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy, both Republicans, have criticized Biden’s plan. In a tweet, Kennedy called it “a cynical attempt to buy votes before an election.”
Rep. Troy Carter, the lone Democrat in Louisiana’s congressional delegation, has been in support of the plan. Carter has also proposed legislation to $50,000 in federal loan debt for all borrowers.
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This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: How much student loan debt do Louisiana graduates have?
