Janice R. Andrews
President Joe Biden’s administration said in a historic step that 317,000 former students of The Art Institutes, a for-profit chain of schools that was accused of fraud and eventually closed its doors last October, would have their $6.1 billion in student debt erased.
With the Supreme Court blocking his administration’s larger forgiveness plan last year, Biden’s larger approach to addressing the startling $1.7 trillion student debt crisis in the country includes this important move.
With campuses spread throughout major cities, the Art Institutes misled students with their claims of job rates and pay. Miguel Cardona, the secretary of education, denounced the conduct of the institution and emphasized the need of protecting borrowers from fraudulent methods.
With this most recent cancellation, approximately 4.6 million borrowers have received debt relief totaling over $160 billion under the Biden administration. Notably, the Education Department discovered that The Art Institutes’ claimed job placement percentages were greatly exaggerated, and the actual numbers were substantially lower.
Loans taken out by qualified borrowers for attendance at Art Institutes between January 1, 2004, and October 16, 2017, will be automatically discharged. Beginning on May 1, notices will be given, and loan payments will be stopped right away.
Biden reiterated his resolve to ensure that all students have access to a more equitable and reasonably priced higher education system and to hold dishonest institutions accountable.
