Education Policy

An analysis by the Penn Wharton Budget Model finds that three-quarters of the benefits of President Biden’s student loan plan will go to low-income and middle-class earners, even among borrowers ages 25 to 35. 

An updated analysis from the Penn Wharton Budget Model projects that President Biden’s additional loan forgiveness for borrowers with Pell Grants could raise the plan’s cost to $519 billion, with most of the benefit accruing to low- and middle-income workers.

Kent Smetters of the Wharton School says that President Biden’s loan forgiveness plan has no specific dedicated revenue for its costs and would simply add to the national debt.

Abby Reisman and Ismael Jimenez of the Graduate School of Education join a team of Philadelphia educators to discuss American history, equity and inclusion, critical race theory, and other educational issues of 2022.

Kent Smetters of the Penn Wharton Budget Model says that Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan will simply create debt to be paid out over time, adding to an already sizable national debt.

Kent Smetters of the Penn Wharton Budget Model says that student debt relief’s effect on inflation would only be about a tenth of a percent.

Courtney Boen of the School of Arts & Sciences says that debt contributes to higher stress levels and worse health, and that Black and Hispanic Americans carry more of it.