Congressman Visclosky Hosts FASFA Symposium at Gary Career Center

On Thursday, February 21, Congressman Pete Visclosky hosted an informational symposium to educate high school seniors and other prospective college students on the benefits of taking student loans out through FASFA. The address began with Congressman Visclosky offering some inspirational words on the necessity of a college education in order to succeed in today's workforce. He then proceeded to introduce Gary Mayor, Karen Freeman-Wilson, who emphasized the importance of an educated workforce in rejuvenating Gary's struggling economy, after whom Dr. Cheryl Pruitt, Superintendent of the Gary Community Schools Corporation, added to the narrative by attempting to empower the student audience by telling them that they alone controlled their own destiny, and that a college education was the tool that they needed to see their destinies fulfilled. All three introductory speakers gave similar, empowering messages, tying together the theme of the night: you need a college education to succeed, and if you can't afford one, FASFA is there to help.

After the brief series of introductions from the community leaders, Richard Blasen from the U.S. Department of Education approached the podium to deliver his presentation that everyone came to hear. Blasen started his speech off by addressing the popular myths surrounding federal student aid, such as that only good grades and low incomes makes you eligible for federal aid, separating fact from fiction. Blasen elaborated that grades and income are marginal factors that contribute towards total eligibility and that there is a lot more that comes into play that determines how much you stand to earn. This started the night off on a positive note, familiarizing students with the popular myths about FASFA while dispelling them so they feel more encouraged to apply.

Blasen then went on to discuss the many different types of loans, such as subsidized and unsubsidized, as well as the programs that fall beneath them, like the Federal Perkins Loan, the Federal Stafford Direct Loan, and the Federal Parent Plus Loan, distinguishing them by their varying interest rates and grace periods. Blasen also elaborated on the benefits of unsubsidized loans, such as the attractive, lower interest rates, as well as their grace periods, allowing students anywhere from six to nine months after they graduate before they even have to begin paying their loans back.

During this very informative presentation, Blasen compared everything he spoke on about FASFA with information on private loans, illustrating the advantages of getting federal student aid over the more predatory private loan companies like Sallie Mae. Things like a fixed, lower interest rate, not having to pay your loans back until months after you've graduated, the possibility of having your payments postponed or lowered temporarily if you're having trouble paying them, and the possibility of having a portion of your loans forgiven if you work in the public sector were all examples of the much more compassionate and understanding system you could become a part of in the instance you can't afford college by yourself without resorting to private loans.

After Blasen's presentation was over, the audience was free to question him about student loans, as well as the many regional college representations present at the event to inspire enrollment. During this time, I was able to interview Congressman Visclosky. Since a prominent theme echoed by each speaker was that students from the Northwest Indiana region need to return to their communities with their newly developed skillsets, I inquired as what sort of jobs students should be expecting to return to in order not only to improve their local communities, but to pay off these loans that helped them get through college.

The congressman's immediate response was his ongoing commitment to the empowerment of the Northwest Indiana steel industry, but he also made remarks on another manufacturing opportunity that he is currently seeing through: "The Gateway project." The Gateway Project would "improve freight crossing across eight locations from Porter, Indiana to the Illinois line to move freight more efficiently through Northwest Indiana and to give us more opportunities for distribution and warehousing." The development of local railways would certainly open up work, but is it the kind of work college grads should be seeking out? These are jobs that already disparaged workers in Gary need, not recent PUC or IUN grads, which is why I think Visclosky more directly answered my question when he mentioned that our workforce needs to be empowered with skills that attract firms to come to Northwest Indiana. The kind of jobs Visclosky is working on creating are perfect for the unemployed of the region; for recent graduates, not so much.

I also had the opportunity to interview Richard Blasen. On the issue of repayment programs, Blasen talked to me about the standard repayment program in which you pay back a fixed, monthly rate; the graduated repayment program, where the amount you pay back periodically goes up each year; and the income based repayment plan, where your payments are adjusted affordably to how much you make. Pressed for time, Blasen suggested students visit the federal student aid website to learn more details about which repayment programs work best for you.

Unfortunately, education is not free, and for many of us, that presents opportunity barriers which inhibit us from realizing both our intellectual and earning potential. However, that doesn't mean an education is completely out of reach. It does not speak well of the progress of a nation where students must indebt themselves to get an education, but this symposium did a great job of educating prospective students on the very flexible loan and repayment programs offered by the federal government through FASFA, as well as the financial dangers of taking loans from a private company.