The most recent suspension of federal student loan payments is slated to end this month, and the top education official of the country indicated that a potential extension is still being thought about.
Miguel Cardona, the secretary of education for the United States, stated on “CBS Mornings” on Tuesday, “While I do not have an announcement here today, I will tell you we are having talks daily with the White House and borrowers will hear directly and shortly from us when a decision is made.”
Since the COVID-19 epidemic started in 2020, over 40 million Americans have been unable to make their federal student loan payments. During this time, interest has been fixed to 0 percent.
The most recent delay, which President Biden announced in April, is set to conclude on August 31. But even though that date is rapidly approaching, it’s still not certain if interest and payments will start up again in September. Progressive Democrats and activists have also put pressure on Biden to forgive all or part of his college debt.
Cardona declined to go into detail about his conversations with the White House, but he did say that the administration of Vice President Biden is committed to students and is working to improve what he termed a “broken system.”
Cardona said that the president has been very clear about the importance of putting students’ needs first. “We’ve been proud of the $28 billion in debt forgiveness up to this point and the rules that we’ve altered to correct a dysfunctional system,” Cardona added. We understand that Americans are watching, and we’ll let them know as quickly as we can.
About $8 billion of the $28 billion in targeted debt forgiveness would go to borrowers who were scammed by colleges.
In the interview on Tuesday, Cardona also discussed the rising teacher shortage in the country. According to a July study by the EdWeek Research Center, just around three-quarters of schools nationally had enough applications to fill their available teaching jobs.
To attempt to get teachers back into the classroom, Cardona asked local and state authorities to find measures to enhance working conditions and provide financial incentives.
Working conditions and competitive pay both key, according to Cardona. “That is sad. We have master’s-degreed instructors who need to work weekends as Uber drivers to make ends meet. In the United States, that is intolerable.”
One of the most frequent difficulties in finding and keeping teachers in the United States is low compensation.
Other issues include burnout and unfavourable working circumstances, including big class sizes. States and school districts are scurrying to hire instructors, so some are coming up with creative strategies to draw applicants.
A statute enabling members of the armed forces to teach without a college degree was just enacted by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, where there are still roughly 8,000 unfilled teaching posts. The Dallas, Texas, school system is providing up to $3,500 in incentives to entice and retain teachers.
Cardona stated that the nation has long had a teacher shortage.
He urged state and local authorities to utilise monies from the American Rescue Plan, a pandemic relief package signed by President Biden last year that contains billions of dollars in help to state and local governments, saying, “This was true before the epidemic, but it’s worse today.”
We’re on the verge of a catastrophe, and if we don’t take this seriously and if it wasn’t a signal that we need to advance the profession and pay them competitive rates, particularly given the state of the employment market, then we’re losing a chance, according to Cardona.