Thousands of students at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) across the country had their fall enrollment plans derailed this year by significant changes in a key federal loan program, according to officials at a number of institutions and a report last month by the Chairman of the President’s Board of Advisors on HBCUs.
Institutions large and small, public and private, cited a tightening of “criteria” for receiving Parent PLUS loans (PPL) as the culprit, with the advisory board chairman’s report estimating some 14,000 students learned in August and September that the U.S. Department of Education, which administers the PPL program, had rejected applications from the students’ parents or guardians for loans to help pay college expenses.
Under the new loan criteria, parents seeking loans to assist their children with college costs were required to disclose debt “charge offs” and items in collection as part of their financial, including medical bills. Those items, not required in the past, were considered by loan processors when determining whether a parent qualified for a PPL.
PLUS loans have no cap in the amount that can be borrowed. Generally, they carry an interest rate of 8-9 percent.
The impact of the tighter loan rules was widespread, said admissions and financial aid officials at a number of schools sampled, particularly among the historically poor and the `new poor,’ those families that lost high paying jobs, their homes and much of their savings during the Great Recession that started in 2008.
Hampton University, the prestigious private college in Virginia, reported a loss of $6 million in anticipated revenue, traceable to parents of students enrolled at all levels being denied PPLs.
Officials at Florida A&M University, Morehouse College, Bowie State University, Benedict College, Howard University and Delaware State University, said they also notice a significant increase in loan denials.
