Using pandemic stimulus money, nearly two dozen schools across the country are forgiving fees for things like extra courses, parking tickets, lost library books and, in some cases, tuition, Bloomberg News reported. On Wednesday, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced what will be the largest of these programs, erasing $125 million in unpaid tuition and fees for students in the City University of New York system. Students can get to graduation owing a range of fees that, in some cases, can exceed $10,000. By comparison, those who finished college at either public or nonprofit schools in 2019 and took out loans, left with an average of almost $29,000 in debt, according to The Institute for College Access and Success. Students who drop out of school because of unpaid balances suffer the worst of all worlds: No degree and student loan payments over their head.
