RCC III: Student loans

Washington Post has an interesting story today about community college students who are unable to access federal loans.

Highlights:

• A growing number of community colleges are exiting the federal student loan program, leaving nearly a million students without access to low-cost options to pay for school.
• Nearly 1 in 10 community college students in 32 states have no access to federal student loans.
• Minority students are disproportionately impacted when schools opt out. In Alabama, for example, 61 percent of African-American students lack federal loan access compared to 34 percent of white students. Roughly 86 percent of Native American students in Montana lack access to federal loans, compared to 2 percent of their white peers.
• The cost of college isn’t limited to tuition. It also includes textbooks, transportation and living costs. And very few community colleges students get those costs covered by grants.
• Students who need the help should have access to the most affordable options.

I was unable to take out student loans for RCC for this very reason! They don't accept federal student loans, and I didn't qualify for MA loans. MA requires that you be under age 24, it is your first degree, and you need more than $1,000, all of which I didn't qualify for. My goal was to take out the loan in January 2016 and to pay it back with my AmeriCorps Ed Award in August. It took numerous phone calls and visits to RCC financial aid and emails to my AmeriCorps supervisor to find out the answer was no.

I paid my spring tuition out of pocket - and I know I'm fortunate because that's not an option for everyone. As a positive, we used the same book from the fall, so at least I didn't have to buy a new book.