THE DEBT COLLECTIVE AND ROLLING JUBILEE FUND PARTNERED TO CANCEL $1.7 MILLION IN HBCU STUDENT DEBT
The Debt Collective and the Rolling Jubilee Fund partnered up to cancel $1.7 million in student loan debt for nearly 500 former Bennett College students, an all-women’s historically Black institution in North Carolina.
“We understand that this has been an exceptionally challenging time and want to ease people’s burdens.” Bennett College issued a statement. “The debts that were erased for these 462 individuals were debts owed directly to the school. These debts are different from federal and private student loans, which we do not have the ability to cancel because they are owned by the federal government.”
The Debt Collective is a non-profit organization that helps people fight against their debt, while the Rolling Jubilee Fund is a charity that buys up consumer debt for pennies on the dollar and then forgives it.
When students have to pay debts, as a consequence, institutions typically withhold their academic records. One of the accounts belonged to a student from 1996. The range of canceled debts included charges for tuition costs, unpaid parking tickets, or overdue library fees. Now, students can continue their education as they will have access to their transcripts.
Denetta Lawson, a new mom to 6-week-old twin girls, said, “I couldn’t do nothing but thank God,” Lawson said. “It’s such a great chance for a new start, you know what I’m saying? Especially so the girls [her daughters] can see that it’s not too late to start over if you have to, just as long as you focus on finishing, and you know, keep a goal in mind.”
The Debt Collective chose Bennett College since Black women have a relatively higher student loan balance than other groups. Braxton Brewington told the newspaper. “These are the people that are really taking the brunt of the student debt crisis,” Brewington explained.
Student debt is a national crisis, especially for Black borrowers who hold a disproportionately high amount of student loan debt, according to a 2020 NAACP report. “This is also true for Black students pursuing master’s and doctoral degrees, whereby 81 percent borrowed for graduate school,” the report states.
