“Student Life and Debt” Looks At The Looming Problem We Face
By Ryan McNamara
Sociology professor Kimberly DaCosta and NYU Divest activist Sophie Lasoff have teamed up to create an event series entitled “Student Life and Debt.”
“Gallatin’s Student Life and Debt is a series of events to share knowledge on how to understand, manage, overcome and avoid debt,” says the series’ website.
In November, the series began with a discussion between Professors Paula Chakravartty, Robert Wosnitzer, Kim DaCosta and distinguished Gallatin dropout Lucy Parks. The speakers discussed how student debt fits into larger structural trends in higher education, and what students can do to about the issue.
The series kicked off this semester with a screening of the documentary “Ivory Tower,” a film exploring reasons the cost of higher education has increased rapidly. After the viewing, a panel discussion ensued in which the director and editor were joined by Cooper Union activists featured in the film.
“About two-thirds of U.S. students graduate with debt,” said Lasoff. According to the Gallatin senior, this trend hits NYU students especially hard. “It’s pretty critical for students at a private school, where we take on a large amount of loans and financial packages, to understand the realities of this situation.”
On Wednesday, March 11, the series will host its next event entitled “Retire at 30? Financial Independence and How to Get There.” Future events include a financial literacy workshop, a loan repayment workshop, and a discussion on the history and culture of debt.
A series on debt seems especially relevant to the life of an NYU student, as the average level of debt upon graduation at this school is over $35,000.
The nation’s student debt has reached well over $1 trillion, and college costs show no signs of slowing down. These trends have led many to seriously reevaluate student debt. NYU professor Andrew Ross has asked, “Are Student Loans Immoral?” Students at Everest (for-profit) College have vowed not to pay back their loans sighting moral and legal grounds. The Student Life and Debt series isn’t alone in its attempts to reevaluate the current situation.
Lasoff said that she was inspired to work on the project because “part of the burden of debt is that its very individualized, and there is a certain aspect of shame associated with. I think it’s very important for us to come together in order to combat the isolation that is generated by being in extreme debt.”
