MWSU offers advice on debt relief
Oct. 23—Missouri Western State University urges past and present students to find out if they qualify for federal debt relief.
President Joe Biden announced on Monday that www.studentaid.gov now contains a signup process designed to be completed in less than 10 minutes in which people can apply for debt relief. Anyone who has received a federally serviced student loan can qualify. On Friday, the Eight Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals put an administrative stay on the program pending a legal challenge from various states, led in part by Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt. In the meanwhile, the studentaid.gov website remains online.
Journee Davis, an MWSU student from St. Louis studying journalism, said the federal debt relief will be important in continuing to make higher education available to those who otherwise cannot afford it.
"And you ultimately don't have a choice, if you want to make a better living for yourself," she said. "So it's like, you have to do it. You have to go to school. I know some of my peers don't come from the most wealthy or the most prosperous backgrounds. They don't come from families that can help them. A loan might be the only way, and it's important to help them out."
A base amount of $10,000 in forgiveness is on offer, and people who received a Federal Pell Grant can receive $20,000. In the meantime, everyone who owes money to the federal government in the student loan system continues to enjoy forbearance — zero dollars owed per month with 0% interest — until at least Dec. 31.
"This is a game changer for millions of Americans," Biden said, "and it took an incredible amount of effort to get this website done in such a short time."
Cindy Spotts-Conrad, MWSU director of financial aid, said student borrowers of whatever kind should take the time to go online and complete the form; they should not assume they won't qualify, and they should not fear a drawn-out or intrusive process. Financial aid directors have been anticipating this kind of relief for the borrowers they serve for some time, and this is a significant boon for the Griffon community: MWSU borrowers owe an average of $24,000 after their studies are complete, meaning the $10,000 to $20,000 in relief available can greatly reduce or eliminate the debt burden.
"It's been a long time mission to address the issue with student loan debt," Spotts-Conrad said. "I think that's been coming for a long time. This is probably the first — well, not the first — but a very important step in, you know, in helping our borrowers, in helping with repayment, now."
It is important, Spotts-Conrad added, to be wary of would-be fraudsters, who are likely to pose as agents of the federal government or as authorized third parties, selling a "benefit" or "service" to increase the amount of money forgiven or make the process easier. Any such offer is fraudulent and should be disregarded, she said. The federal government always has, and always will, offer the same student financial aid benefit without cost, and it is not possible to pay any kind of service or fee to make this aid better or easier to obtain. Every free benefit is found via www.studentaid.gov.
"The amount of fraud that is expected to take place here is tremendous," Spotts-Conrad said. "We have to protect our borrowers."
Marcus Clem can be reached at marcus.clem@newspressnow.com. Follow him on Twitter: @NPNowClem
