User:Benfuda/sandbox

Why Debt is Rising
Federal aid policies expanded loan eligibility and shifted from grants to loans starting the rising student debt. More students over the years have been actively enrolled in universities, with for-profit universities enrollment growing by over 5 million in the past 10 years. For-profit universities enroll only 10% of the nations active college enrollment, yet hold nearly 20% of all federal student loan. States have also deprived public support and shifted the financial burden onto students by increasing the cost of tuition. With the median family income on a steady decline each year since 2007 up until 2012, it saw increasing difficulty for students to pay back college tuition out of savings and labor income. Between 2002 and 2012, public spending on education dropped 30%, while total enrollment at public colleges and universities jumped 34%. In a study conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis found that approximate $140 billion in student debt was loaned directly by the federal government, but by 2017, the federal government had reached $1.15 trillion.