Volume 126 Issue 60
kansan.com
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
FINANCE
Report finds students from low-income backgrounds struggle more with debt
HANNAH BARLING
hbarling@kansan.com
Graduating, finding a job and paying off loans are all things that probably petrify most students. But what if financing college more efficiently and decreasing the amount of student debt after graduation was possible?
Students from lower- or moderate-income families have a harder time dealing with student loan debt than students from higher-income families, according to a report published by two professors in the School of Social Welfare.
William Elliott III, associate professor, and Melinda Lewis, associate professor of practice, authorized "Student Loans are Widening the Wealth Gap. Time to Focus on Equity." The report was produced through the Assets and Education Initiative, an office that is part of the University's School of Social Welfare.
THE ISSUES
Students who don't have to take out loans for school are graduating with a leg up compared to their peers who borrow because those without loan debt can begin accumulating assets immediately, instead of worrying about loan payments.
because they have fewer assets in the first place. He said students from higher-income families who don't get a job immediately after graduation can rely on their parents to help with loan payments, but lower-income students don't have that advantage.
Having assets — a combination of savings, bonds, insurance policies and other forms of money — as well as tangible assets such as cars and real estate are one of the main advantages higher-income students have.
The average amount of debt per student has risen 31 percent since 2007. Americas total student debt has seen a 76 percent increase, going from $548 billion in 2007 to $966 billion in 2012. College graduates with debt have a lower net worth, less home equity and compromised ability to accumulate assets than students with no debt, according to the report.
Higher education has been looked at as a bridge between having goals and actually attaining those goals. Elliott said assets are key for people to move out of poverty and into higher-income brackets.
Assets, or the lack thereof, are not the only issue when it comes to managing student debt. Lewis said it's important for students to be informed consumers of loans. They may be responsible for large amounts of debt after graduation. A limited exposure to important financial decisions, such as taking out loans prior to enrolling in college, may also be an issue.
Elliott said it is harder for lower-income students to handle debt
LONG-TERM FINANCIAL HEALTH FACTS
63 percent less net worth
40 percent less home equity
52 percent less retirement savings
HOUSEHOLD WITH A COLLEGE DEGREE AND STUDENT DEBT
Current public policy is another issue for college funding. Most wealthy students finance their education through assets and it works really well, Lewis said. These assets are not only accumulated through the families, but also through public policy.
4 out of 10 U.S. households headed by individuals younger than 35 have outstanding student debt
Families with earnings high enough to create a tax liability can earn a tax deduction from the state
76 PERCENT $548B→$966B 2007 2013
America's total student debt average has increased 76 percent since 2007,rising from $548 billion to $966 billion
2X more likely to own savings accounts
2X more likely to own credit cards
4X more likely to own stocks
YOUNG ADULT GRADUATES WHO HAD SAVINGS AS ADOLESCENTS
Source: Student Loans are Widening the Wealth Gap.
Time to Focus on Equity (report)
THE SOLUTIONS
for setting money aside for their children's education, essentially making it cheaper for families to save for their children's college than it otherwise would be.
Those ineligible for the tax liability do not receive any subsidizing from the state to help pay for their children's college. Lewis said this creates a sort of two-track payment system for higher education — those with savings and those who take out loans.
"We want to have an impact on reshaping. A kind of starting-at-birth, asset-employing financial aid approach," Lewis said.
She said they believe this approach can not only create superior financial outcomes for young students, families and older adults, but also superior
SEE DEBT PAGE 3
CAMPUS
Services offered for grieving students
On Monday, Lawrence Police preliminarily identified the body of Giandran Villagomez, the 23-year-
old University
old University student who had been missing since Saturday morning. Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) is offering appointments.
Villagomez
If need be, the Office of Student Affairs will work with grieving students and their faculty to see if scheduling arrangements for final exams can be made. The decision to adjustfinals schedules is up to individual faculty members. Student Affairs can be contacted by calling (785) 864-4060.
Students who mention they were a friend of Gianfranco Villagomez will be scheduled as soon as possible. Appointments can be made by calling (785) 864-2277 or visiting the CAPS office on the second floor of Watkins Memorial Health Center.
Stay updated online at Kansan. com as the story develops.
— Emily Donovan
CAMPUS
KU Endowment aims to increase donations through new website
ASHLEIGH TIDWELL
atidwell@kansan.com
The campaign, which was launched in April 2012, seeks the support of donors to educate future leaders, advance medicine, accelerate discovery and drive economic growth, according to the KU Endowment website.
Last month KU Endowment launched a sub-site as a part of the University's Far Above campaign, where donors can contribute to the campaign's $1.2 billion goal.
Lisa Scheller, media relations manager for KU Endowment, said that the new site's main goal is to raise public awareness of the campaign and the support it is giving the University.
Scheller said that the online donation system that started 10 years ago has provided a convenient way for donors to support the University. But the new site provides more information on the progress of the campaign and the ways in which it has assisted students at the University.
"We want to keep donors and prospects informed about the campaign's progress." Scheller said. "The new Far Above site
allows donors to understand how their gifts will benefit each school and major unit."
The campaign has raised $987 million to date, which puts it just $213 million short of its goal. Though the online giving system has been a major factor in garnering donations, Scheller said that there is a lot of work that goes into fundraising through KU Endowment.
"For the past three years, online donations have topped $1 million annually," Scheller said.
"It involves cultivating and stewarding donors through personal visits by our team of fundraisers to find out what the donors are truly passionate about," Scheller said.
Through the generous support of alumni and friends, KU Endowment has been able to support University students in several different ways. They provide about 10,000 scholarships, awards, fellowships and loans to students each year and provide funding for more than two-thirds of campus buildings. They are also providing trees for the reconstruction of Jayhawk Boulevard.
Scheller encourages students who wish to be involved with KU Endowment to join the KU Student Endowment Board.
Edited by Chas Strobel
KUendowment.org
JAMES HOYT/KANSAN
Father, son work to digitize German texts
One of the oldest buildings on campus, located at 1134 W. 11th St., is home to the Max Kade Center for German-American Studies.
AMELIA ARVESEN
aarvesen@kansan.com
LAWRENCE
Wisps of smoke swirl into the frigid air above a limestone-cobbled house. A meandering pathway leads through a gate covered by a pointed roof in a stone wall. The surrounding grass is edged by the remnants of the first snow and the scene in its entirely is enchanting.
If the exterior is at all alluding to what's inside, it shouldn't come as a surprise that the building is home to the Max Kade Center for German-American Studies. The Sudler House and the adjacent annex — located at 1134 W. 11th St. — offer a window into the long established history of German residency in Kansas.
emigration and exile of Germans, dating as far back as the Civil War. The collections were largely compiled by the director of 15 years, Frank Baron, Ph.D., who retired earlier this year.
SPORTS 10
SUDOKU 5
Pressing the doorbell elicits a folky tune, and if Baron or either of the Morrisons are inside, they will happily lead a tour through numerous rooms filled with
"The idea that this is a link, or means to share the phenomenon someone else felt one hundred, two hundred years ago, is just remarkable," said Thomas Morrison, a senior from Lawrence minoring in German. "It's your neighbors. It's that building that everybody passes every day that's made by Germans for Germans."
bookshelves. Crumbling leather-bound books with gold-edged pages and little Bibles are among the many pieces of German literature that fill the shelves, as well as works by Freud, Einstein and Humboldt.
Don't forget
The focus of the center is to promote the study of the language, history and culture of German-speaking immigrants and their contributions to American society. All students are encouraged to take a peek inside. Appointments can be made by emailing Jim Morrison at idmorr@ku.edu.
BARON'S successor, lecturer Jim Morrison, is eager to digitize the collections so anyone interested can access the resources. Morrison's son, Thomas, is the center's student research assistant and carefully handles every piece for the expanding digital catalog.
"Was it a gimmick that these books were made so small or were these people just thinking, 'Oh, I would love a pocket-sized book?' These are ridiculously small." Thomas said.
"There is real value for those students who can use those sources for some purpose," said Jim Morrison. "It has a lot of interesting points to it that deal with American studies."
"I have a lot of different projects," Baron said.
Baron, as well, is steeped in the literature that surrounds his office in the basement, making it the ultimate setup for research. Though retired, he continues to work and learn.
THOMAS MORRISON Senior from Lawrence
"it's that building that everybody passes every day that's made by Germans for Germans."
The main house was completed in 1929 for Dr. Mervin T. Sudler, a Lawrence physician, anatomy professor and dean of the Medical
Index
"It was rather dirty and dingy, but it was beautiful in the same way," Arehart said. "People had been going in there to learn how to do radio for years."
After nearly 40 years, the station found new digs in the Kansas Union. The longstanding building was in desperate need of an update, but Arehart was worried the staple building would be torn down. However, the most recent renovations were completed in 2011 after it was acquired by the Max Kade Foundation.
CRYPTOQUIPS 5
OPINION 4
The band stickers and notes from deejays once adorning the walls have been replaced by art and a flaking, yellow newspaper. It's dated Dec. 25, 1861, the same year the shack was built, making it the oldest building on campus.
School from 1921 until 1924. The University received the building when Sudler died in 1965. It has a library, an upstairs apartment for visiting
CLASSIFIEDS 9
CROSSWORD 5
The builder, James H. Lane, was a leader of the Free State
The small, two-story building behind the house, previously known to students as the "Shack," was used as a studio for KJHK until 2010. Mark Aarehart, a 2011 graduate, fondly recalls searching through the maze of CD and vinyl racks with bleary eyes during his 2 a.m. shift.
professors and a secret room once used for Sudler's stash of booze.
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2013 The University Daily Kansan
SEE SHACK PAGE 3
To pick up the last Kansan of the semester tomorrow.
Today's Weather
Partly cloudy. Zero percent chance of precipitation. Wind N at 14 mph.
Smiling's my favorite.
1924
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