Sen. Mark Warner and Sen. Tim Kaine met with students from 20 Virginia colleges to discuss college debt at a roundtable discussion

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Two Prince George High School graduates were able to take part in a roundtable discussion Jan. 28 and give their views to state senators on college debt.

Danielle Hannuksela and Reeve Ashcraft were two of many students from 20 Virginia colleges traveled to Capitol Hill on Jan. 27 to discuss their challenges paying for college and the impact of rising student loan obligations during a roundtable conversation organized by U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine, both D-VA.

“Sen. Warner and I hosted this roundtable to hear directly from student leaders at universities and colleges across Virginia on ways we can help alleviate the burden of student loan debt, which has surpassed credit card debt in America,” Kaine said. “We also discussed pathways that can make higher education more affordable, including dual enrollment courses during high school and career and technical education programs.”

Hannuksela graduated PGHS in 2012 and is currently senior at Ferrum College. Ashcraft graduated PGHS in 2015 and is currently a freshman at Richard Bland College as well as a member of the county School Board. The two of them represented a diverse cross-section of Virginia’s public and private, two- and four-year colleges and universities. The students shared their concerns about the rising costs of higher education with Sens. Warner and Kaine, and many urged more transparency and flexibility in college loan application and repayment programs.

“I think the most pressing thing I got out of the discussion is that many people want to go to college to have a better future and the high cost of tuition makes it very hard for people to complete their degrees. Also the ins and outs of financial aid are very confusing to not only students, but also their parents,” Hannuksela said. “Many people are choosing to go to a two year college before going to a four year in an effort to save money. I feel like because of this fact some four year college and universities are having to raise tuition in order to offset the low enrollment of incoming high school graduates.”

Ashcraft said he felt as though that legislators are attacking the side-effects of the problem and not going after the source of the issue.

“At some colleges across the country, administrators are making salaries in the seven-figure range, while those same universities are putting students in five-figure debt,” he said. “My main point to the senators is that I believe we need to see colleges become more transparent with their funding and where the money is going.”

Sen. Warner said the campus leaders offered compelling personal stories to illustrate the “crippling impact of student loan debt.”