The return of federal student loan payments this month threatens to derail prospects for graduates of Historically Black Colleges and Universities, a cohort already facing steep economic disadvantages, Bloomberg News reported. Aid makes college possible for many HBCU students: 85% of their graduates in 2020 used federal loans, versus 59% of non-HBCU students, according to the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, with HBCU graduates and their parents on average holding almost $21,000 more in federal loan debt. The nation’s more than 100 HBCUs, including Spelman College in Atlanta and Howard University in Washington, DC, serve more low-income and first-generation students than traditional schools and aim to help close the wealth gap between Black households and their White counterparts. Parents of HBCU students are also more likely to take on loans to support their kids, on average. With payments resuming amid high prices and mortgage rates, entire families are forced to cut back.
