Introduce yourself

Introduce yourself
#24

Hello, my name is AndyT and I live in Detroit & teach part-time @ University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. I’ve been adjuncting in Higher Ed since 2006 and have taught at 7 different schools in the past 14 years. I’m on the tail end of paying off my debt and feel like I was one of the last ones to have “good debt” before everything got way out of control. I had 60K of student loan debt on a 20 yr repayment, some of it at 2.77% and the rest at 3.55% interest! I used to think that higher education was worth going into debt, but not when my students are paying at minimum 8-15% on their loans!

I taught for a year at International Academy of Design & Technology (IADT) which was a subsidiary of CEC (Career Education Corporation, now called Perdoceo Education Corp) a for-profit school with predatory lending practices that have preyed on many students who the school knew were never going to be successful in our program, but they could still collect tuition $$$! So, I wanna join the movement to educate, organize, & advocate debtors to fight back against the rampant exploitation!

In addition to my 60K of student loan debt, I also had at my peak 40K in credit card debt, it’s down to 15K now and starting to feel manageable, but the past 20 yrs to get to this point has been ridiculous and debt management has been a major guiding force in my life! I think about all of the ways that my earnings are not going to anything but debt and I feel like I can’t be a contributor to society (economically, politically, and creatively) nor have any real agency in my life decisions…

I’m active with my union: Lecturers’ Employee Organization (LEO) AFT-MI local 6244at U-M and it has taught me a lot about organizing and collective action. I’d like to participate in a Detroit/MI Chapter of a Debt Collective Union, but I know I’m too occupied currently to lead it/get one started… If you’re anywhere near Detroit hit me up!
AndyT

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#25

Hello! My name is Syed Murtaza, I’m from the Metro-Detroit area in Michigan and work as a social-emotional and community outreach caseworker in the Dearborn School System. I have a BA in Psychology and around $30,000 in student loans. I’ve got the classic story of being a first gen. immigrant, my parents and I moved here from India when I was starting elementary school. Had to navigate student loan applications and everything related to college by myself and help my younger brother (at no insult to my parents, they had no knowledge of the system here).

I’m going to be honest, I look at my student loan servicer like once or twice a year because I hate looking at how much I owe, it’s become an anxiety provoking experience but I’ve been on forbearance and now am on income-driven which has resulted in no payments since public school salaries are not that high. This student debt is my looming dark cloud that follows me and sits in the back of my brain everyday and while I may end up having to pay it back fully, I want to make sure future generations of students do not have to pay to get educated.

2 Likes
#26

Hello!

Lifelong political activist, writer and grass roots supporter of political causes and candidates.

I’ve got a BA in journalism and years of graphics, IT, teaching and publishing expertise.

I want to build a chapter here in New Hampshire.

Let’s DO this, folks!
:peace_symbol: :heartpulse: :slightly_smiling_face:

2 Likes
#27

Hello all!

My name is Jp Diaz and I live in Brooklyn, NY. I am a filmmaker who went to the Academy of Art University in San Francisco from 2016 to 2020. I have as-of-yet been unable to finish my degree, which is in need of only 3 more units from being completed. Since moving to New York to finish the rest of my degree online, I have been unable to secure the funds to cover tuition without the help of private loans, specifically Sallie Mae. SM has caused me to enter extreme debt. This debt is also shared with my step-father, who serves as the co-signer of these loans, and has caused a severe rupture between him and I because of the financial burden my loans have put me under. There’s no plausible way of paying these hundreds of thousands dollars of Private debt I am in, let alone beginning to pay back my Federal loans, without mortgaging my entire future. For most of my 20’s now, I have had this cloud of debt following me and making it impossible to plan for the future. I hope to join this Collective and be exposed to proper critical analysis of the situation we’re all in at the moment, on top of meeting cool people!

Best,
Jp (he/him)
Marxist-Leninist

2 Likes
#28

Hello! My name is Glenn.

I am 65 yrs old and have had the ability to watch how the banking system has changed its business model from what used to be one that promoted small businesses and people to build assets to that of debt enslavement. This has been done with the blessing and capitulation of our government.

Our government has ignored criminal behavior during the selling of fraudulent securities in 2008 that led to the Recession. State governments have developed a Catch-22 situation by making it a criminal offense when you develop the inability to pay your debts. They throw you in jail where you are charged for your upkeep. And when you get out, you are in even more debt than when you went in.

We have a lot of work to do and it is only through political pressure on the banking industry will we be able to do this. I believe though we ARE getting better and there is some light.

In 2018, some in the banking industry are acknowledging income inequality. But do not think for one minute, they have had an epiphany. Jamie Dimon, CEO of Chase made this acknowledgment back in 2018. A good 10 years after the recession. Prior to that, he was silent about this subject. I would remind you that the top 1% have seen their income increase by 1 trillion dollars in one year and no one is complaining about that.

They are doing this because they see the rising of a progressive push in the American political arena and they are trying to get out in front of it. They see that if they do not try and get a seat that this table they will not be able to try and control the policies to come. THAT is their aim.

I look forward to hearing from you all.

1 Like
#29

Alicia,

Would like to talk to you at your convenience about your situation.

Glenn

#30

Hello,

At this point I’m in over $100k in debt from my undergrad and grad degrees plus interest from CA state public universities. I’d say 60% of my debt comes from my grad degree (2014) which I got because there’s no way I could’ve worked without it. All my loans are with the feds (either Navient or Nelnet). I can’t keep track of who owns what debt now. I’ve managed to stay out of repayment except for a several month period where my paltry wages were garnished at 15%. I was working for a nonprofit at the time and hardly made any money.

This debt has loomed over me. It was a huge conversation before I got married. I wanted to make sure this wouldn’t get my partner caught in this web. I’ve signed up for 6 units of community college courses at a time to avoid paying $1,000 a month. I believe university should be free or low-cost. Even though I am making more money now, I fundamentally believe the well to do shouldn’t be the only ones that went to college. Many smart kids I went to high school with ended up working at grocery stores or trades and staying near where I grew up because college wasn’t a financial option.

I hope I can become more active with debt forgiveness efforts. Nice to meet you all.

#31

Hi, as a 62 yr old, who has 160k in debt, and has lived her ENTIRE adult life (since the 1980s) with student loan debt, I am ready to speak out, take action and be a spokesperson for our cause. I am so done and so tired of the injust system. Where do I begin? How do I begin? I already contacted local gov. folks to no avail. I am serious! I am willing to be a spokesperson for our cause. As a pioneer of this issue, I know the time is NOW. Can anyone help in getting me started on getting this old woman’s voice heard at Capitol Hill? Hope to connect with some of you! Victoria

3 Likes
#32

Hi! My name is Marie. I am 35 and live in Durham, NC. I have about $10K in student debt for my BA which I received from a small private university in 2007. I’ve been paying small amounts for a long time and have had $10K for many years. I can’t work much right now due to covid school/childcare closures, though I’m very, very lucky that my spouse makes enough for us to get by at the moment. I’m paying about $100 a month of this debt, a lot of which goes to interest. This also keeps me from paying off some credit card debt and a couple thousand dollars in medical debt from the birth of my second child. I hate this situation, but what worries me more is the situation my parents are in. They took out Parent Plus loans for me 2003-2007. They had good intentions, but of course it’s been a cluster. As a teen I had very few freedoms, was totally financially illerate, yet I was made to promise I’d pay back the loan for them. The layers of predation, ugh. The interest rates are horrible. My father has tried to get me to refinance the loan, which would make it private, and I’m not interested for obvious reasons. I have given them money when I can, which is not often, and right now I can’t pay them anything. They’ve both lost work due to covid, and I know this high loan payment hurts them. Their politics are often antithetical to their own interests and usually antithetical to democracy, and I doubt they would think abolishing debt is moral. Still, I worry about them. I’m joining the debt collective for myself, but also because I don’t know that’s going to happen to my parents. I’m looking forward to learning more. Thanks.

1 Like
#33

Hey all!

My name is Brooke, 26 years old from Lusby, Maryland. About an hour outside of DC and Baltimore. I have about 70k in student loans from my BA in Political Science and English. I love what this group is doing and would love to help out any way I can.

1 Like
#34

Hi, I’m Elizabeth Bender, I’m an Electrical Engineer and graduated in 2016.

I took the path to go back to school when I was married and had two kids already. I needed a major change and retail didn’t work for me anymore. I started back at my local community college and then transferred to one of my state unis 2, or so, years later.

Being married, a non-traditional student (early thirties at the time), and two children, I attempted to work while being a FT student and she worked FT as well. I quickly found that I couldn’t put the focus needed for my studies to do that, so I quit working. To supplement the lost income and off-set my wife’s income I had to maximize my loans to make sure we could cover basic living expenses. Even while we were using state aide.

It took a while, but I graduated and we added another child to our family. 80k debt didn’t seem like that much and with PYE type repayment plan the first two years weren’t hard at all. I was lucky, I could afford what we needed and we started looking for a house.

Now, the payment has quickly ballooned to $800/mo or so, but I’ve let it slide due to COVID. I’d rather use that $800 for other expenses, like braces for my kids and myself. Among other things, better spent than allowing the government to profit off of my learning.

I’m very anxious about how I’m going to afford that payment, plus normal expenses after the moratorium expires.

4 Likes
#35

Hello! My name is Graham Emel. I’m a Junior in college currently. I have about 20k in private loans and 20k in government loans. All my siblings have debt, two of which have over 100k from Sallie Mae. We are all spiritually crushed from the sheer mass, which by some miracle, grows and grows. I just attended a talk with Thomas Gokey, and was absolutely inspired. I want to do everything I can to free others from debt. Hang in there.

1 Like
#36

Good evening.

My name is Em (she/her). I’m a Graphic Design graduate from Texas who has had absolutely no luck finding work in the field. In my family, all kids were expected to go to college and be good, successful little children. I never knew the nature of the debt I was being saddled with until I had already graduated.

120k in private debt (not counting my federal debt) is the sword of Damocles that hangs over my head on the regular. I make only 25k a year and it is frankly disgusting that I’m even expected to repay this thing in the first place for wanting a well-paying career that my private college promised me I had such high chances of getting immediately on graduation.

I have to fight, but I’m still not entirely sure how. Defaulting on this debt would mean losing everything. Living in the streets. I’ve been searching for someone, anyone at all, who may be in my shoes and taking a brave stand. My sister directed me to the Debt Collective. I couldn’t be more grateful to have found this place.

I need help. I can only pull out so many forbearances before the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board tightens my leash to choking point. Are there any chapters in Texas? Any actions I could take? Grassroots efforts? Resources? Recommendations? Anything means hope.

And in kind, I promise to fight for all of you. We’re in it to win the freedom we’ve always deserved in the first place. Let me know. I stand in solidarity with my fellow debt resistors.

4 Likes
#37

Hello everyone! My name is Priscilla and I have about $60k in federal and private loans. It could be more, but I stopped opening the envelopes. I abruptly ended my schooling in Sept 2008 and still incurred a whole semester or year of loan. I stopped paying some years ago because I could no longer afford it without jeopardizing my home income to afford a place to live and food to eat.
They had the audacity to tell me (on our last call) to borrow a family members credit card to pay off all the student loans. So they expected me to use someone else’s credit card to pay them off and then have a bran new debt.
My credit has been ruined since, and they don’t stop. New names for who’s collecting on their part, but always harassing. They garnish any tax returns, anything that is supposed to come my way.
I have no present, and no future with this hanging over my head.
I haven’t been able to afford to pay them off but they’ve refused to do any realistic plan which would technically have me paying until I’m in my grave or 150 years old.
This need to stop. There should be no reason, that in this “Grand Country” of ours, here should be such a huge debt for our future. Our future of ruin, that’s what it is.
So the rich remain rich and those that can’t afford college end up just as poor or worse off than when they began.
Good luck to all of us!

3 Likes
#38

I’m so sorry all of this is happening to you, Priscilla. It’s inhumane and disgusting to subject you to all this trouble. Money brings out the worst in humanity and it shows.

This year could very well be a breakthrough point for all of us with enough people power and dissent. In the meantime, there are things you could possibly do to get these parasites off your case. This site has a debt resistor’s handbook for dealing with collections and knowing all your rights in this situation.

Don’t give up. Fight these people and make a stand for yourself. You can only be told ‘no’ so many times if you’re stubborn and resilient. It’s people like you I’ll be fighting like hell for. All best and stay strong. We’ll get through this.

1 Like
#39

Hello, all. My name is Wendy and I have a parent plus loan of over $100,000 plus my kids also have loans. The largest debt is ironically toward the education of the kid who got the most grants, fellowships and awards. They weren’t enough to pay housing, food, materials. Since then it just goes up and up. I owe for him and his younger brother - each owe 10,00 and $30,000. Their oldest brother is working on paying off $15,000 or so. I never imagined that the plans would require such HUGE monthly payments, since they advertised income-driven. But the payments are really unrealistic.

2 Likes
#40

Hi, Elizabeth. I’m Wendy, a single parent who divorced shortly before my kids started college. I have a PhD and should be comfortable. Instead of I am full of anxiety even though I have a regular job.Why? I’m asked to pay $900/month to nelnet. I never imagined they would set monthly payments so high!! Unbelievably cynical. This situation will kill the. middle class if we don’t do something!

1 Like
#41

I so agree with you. It is comforting (but also scary) to see how bad it is for everyone, DebtSlaveNoMore and everyone else. From Wendy.

1 Like
#42

Thank you for your kind words. I just inquired and I have about $23k in federal loans and $53k in private loans. :cold_sweat: Oh I didn’t even get to complete the degree at the time.

#44

Hello from Chicago, IL! My name is Maddie (she/her). I have $150,000+ in federal loans from my undergraduate degree and graduate degree. I completed my graduate degree in 2020. I’ll begin paying under an income-driven repayment plan once the moratorium ends. I’m really concerned for my mom, who took out Parent Plus loans for me - so far, we’ve worked out that I’ll pay what I can to her monthly. If anyone has other information/insight as to Parent Plus loans and family members who have taken out loans to assist, I’d be so appreciative! It’s nice to meet everyone and I’m looking forward to working with you all!