Feb. 3
College Students Say They Got Short Shrift in SOU
By Janelle Berry
Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from 101Magazine.net
(TriceEdneyWire.com) - President Barack Obama paid more attention to the diaper-wearing workers of tomorrow than to today’s struggling college students, some young viewers said after watching the State of the Union address.
In his speech, the president addressed many issues such as immigration and a minimum-wage increase. He even discussed making higher-quality education for preschool children, but he didn’t spend enough time on solutions to prevent college graduates from being trapped in debt, students said.
“Five years ago we set out to change the odds for all our kids,” Obama said. “We worked with lenders to reform student loans, and today more young people are earning college degrees than ever before.”
“We're shaking up our system of higher education to give parents more information and colleges more incentives to offer better value, so that no middle-class kid is priced out of a college education,” the president added later in his address. “We're offering millions the opportunity to cap their monthly student loan payments to 10 percent of their income, and I want to work with Congress to see how we can help even more Americans who feel trapped by student loan debt.”
About 60 percent, roughly 12 million, of the 20 million Americans attending college “borrow annually to help cover costs,” according to American Student Assistance, a nonprofit organization focusing on student debt. “There are approximately 37 million student loan borrowers with outstanding student loans today.” Many college students are concerned about being a part of this statistic.
“I wish he spoke more on decreasing the cost of education,” said Jerel Sangster, a sophomore majoring in broadcast journalism at Howard University. “I’ll be swimming in debt by the time I graduate.”
In Meridian Hill Hall, a dormitory for sophomores, several students filled the TV room for a State of the Union watch party. For roughly an hour and 20 minutes, there was a lot of quiet observation, some “yeses” to mentions of equality for women and some sounds of teeth-sucking at the mention of student loans.
Imani Harmon, a political science major, was looking forward to hearing President Obama speak more on his solutions for students paying for school. She exited with still no answers.
“I wish I would’ve heard more about it since it’s more relevant to us,” said a disappointed Harmon.
In a speech that focused heavily on employment and the economy, President Obama stated his demand for more challenging curriculums, wanting higher quality education and redesigning high schools to lead directly to a job or a career.
“We cannot only guarantee today’s workforce, but guarantee tomorrow’s workforce,” Obama said.
The college students complained that it seems as though Obama is worried more about the future generation. “We’re the ones who fill these jobs and create them,” Sangster said, “so why didn’t he spend more time trying to figure out what to do about us?”
Janelle Berry is a writer for 101Magazine.net at Howard University.