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Some college students and recent graduates are hopeful that President Joe Biden might promote federal student debt forgiveness.

But economics and political science professors at Syracuse University, Biden’s alma mater, are uncertain — not just about whether Biden will be able to enact student loan forgiveness but also if it’s the right step for the country’s post-pandemic economic recovery. 

“The argument for completely forgiving (student) debt, or the argument for this policy of forgiveness being a real economic tool, decreases post-pandemic,” said Alfonso Flores-Lagunes, a professor of economics in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. 

Biden graduated from SU’s College of Law in 1968 and has maintained connections with the university throughout his political career, including returning to campus to give multiple speeches before and during his tenure as vice president. He ran for president on a platform centered around rebuilding the economy following the pandemic’s financial fallout and healing partisan divides. 

Biden’s platform has included at least partial student loan forgiveness. Biden officials confirmed Jan. 8 that the president supports canceling $10,000 in student debt per person as part of his COVID-19 relief plan. And on his first day in office, Biden extended an existing moratorium on student loan debt until Sept. 30.

But total student loan forgiveness — which would total $1.6 trillion — is unlikely to take place under Biden’s administration, though some more targeted policies may succeed, experts said. 

At SU, the median federal student loan debt stands at $27,000 for those who completed their undergraduate degree, with 12% of students taking out private loans, according to U.S. News & World report.

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The most progressive wing of the Democratic Party typically supports complete student loan debt forgiveness, said Steven White, a professor of political science at the Maxwell School. Although Biden has moved further left on the issue, he still views himself as a moderate and is unlikely to pursue full student debt cancellation, White said. 

Biden is also likely to face strong pushback from Republicans, who have portrayed student debt as unfair relief for people who voluntarily took out loans.

“Whether you have a college degree is increasingly a strong predictor of whether you’re a Democrat or a Republican,” White said “For Republicans, it creates less of an incentive (to pursue student debt forgiveness).”

Biden’s administration will likely work to provide partial student debt relief specifically directed at students who took out loans to attend public colleges, rather than expensive private ones, White said. 

“Most students in the country don’t go to private universities,” White said. “We don’t think about college debt as being a problem for those students, but it really is.”

A more moderate approach to debt relief also makes better economic sense, said Amy Schwartz, a professor of economics at the Maxwell School.

Forgiving large amounts of student loan debt, while helpful to borrowers, may seem unfair to those who made sacrifices to pay off their loans, Schwartz said. It may also create a dangerous incentive for students who otherwise wouldn’t have taken out loans to do so, with the hope the government would step in and forgive them, creating a downward spiral, Flores-Lagunes said.  

In addition to targeted debt relief, there are other policies that the Biden administration could pursue to stem ballooning student debt in the United States, Flores-Lagunes said. These could include identifying students who took out loans to attend fraudulent for-profit colleges and working to make college more affordable so students don’t accumulate debt in the first place. 

“Forgiving some amount of this debt is a good policy,” Flores-Lagunes said. “There’s no question about it.”

Published on February 16, 2021 at 10:19 pm

Contact Richard: rcperrin@syr.edu | @richardperrins2