Volume 125 Issue 27
kansan.com
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
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IS IT WORTH IT?
DEBTS AND DIPLOMAS
Pew Research Center study reports student debt has doubled in past decade
Graph Source: Pew Research Center, Social & Demographic Trends, released Sept. 26, 2012
NIKKI WENTLING
nwentling@kansan.com
For many students, the hardest part of college may not be studying for tests or acing a research paper but simply graduating without a mountain of debt to pay off, as revealed in a Pew Research Center study released last week.
According to the findings, one in five U.S. households owed student debt in 2010, a number that has more than doubled in the past 10 years and has jumped 4 percent since 2007. The study also shows that almost all students who attend four-year universities graduate with debt, in average ranging from $24,600 to $34,600 based on family income.
This study was no surprise to William Elliott III, an associate professor in the School of Welfare. Elliott released a paper this year about the burden of college costs. He said loans have been making up a greater portion of student financial aid packages for the past 20 years, and parents are unable to contribute as much as they did before the Great Recession in 2008, especially in middle-income families.
Elliott said the high amounts of debt will continue to rise in the next several years.
"It's a major problem for literally millions of Americans." Elliott said. "It will continue to be a problem and weigh down our economy in the years to come."
Noah Quinn, a peer educator with the University's Student Money Management Services (SMMS), said that in 2009, 59 percent of KU graduates had student loan debt at an average of $20,500.
Jessica Montoya, a junior from Garden City, is the kind of student these findings reflect. Montoya expects that, by the time she
graduates in 2014, she will be about $20,000 in debt, an amount she has tried to limit by taking on two jobs and creating a personal budget.
"My parents tell me, "Take what you need, don't take extra," Montoya said. "I take the least amount of loans I can each semester, but so far I'm about $9,000 in debt."
Montoya receives scholarships and grants through the University, and her parents pay her rent. However, she has worked at an on-campus job throughout her college career in order to finance her living expenses. This summer, Montoya tacked on another job and is now working 20 hours per week.
"I felt like I was living beyond my means." Montoya said. "I hated taking money from my parents, and I wanted to be able to afford some more stuff on my own."
In Elliott's paper, "The College Cost Burden and the Role of Race, Income, and College Assets," he reports that, as of 2006, about 70 percent of dependent students at four-year colleges had jobs. However, he
said students should begin working and saving money at an earlier age to avoid debt.
This is what Corinne Westman, a 2012 University graduate, did to fund entertainment expenses and pay for textbooks. Westman began saving money in high school and continued working about 12 hours per week throughout her college career. To further offset costs, Westman increased her credit hours per semester to graduate in three years with about $8,000 in student loan debt, which she will begin paying off this November.
"This way, I can build up a little bit more money before I want to move out," Westman said. "I'm trying to do what I can to knock it all out."
Now, Westman is living with her parents in Wichita and paying off the interest on her loans.
Although taking more credit hours to graduate early may not
"I miss KU a lot. I'll certainly miss the experience of that fourth year," she said. "But as far as finances go, yeah, it was worth it."
sound feasible or easy, Westman said she is glad she made that decision.
As Elliot continues to research the costs of post-secondary education, he said the financial burden should shift from the individual student to the state and federal government. He said education benefits individuals and society as a whole, and funding children's education should be a community effort as well.
"Colleges need to find ways to reduce costs, and community members could contribute to savings accounts or scholarship programs," Elliott said. "The federal and state government needs to see college as a necessary investment in children's lives, for the future of the child and the future of the country."
— Edited by Joanna Hlavacek
LAWRENCE
Libraries celebrate Banned Books Week
EMILY BROWN
ebrown@kansan.com
This week marks the 30th anniversary of Banned Books Week, an annual event hosted in libraries across the country that brings awareness to censorship and commemorates the freedom of information.
The Lawrence Public Library is celebrating the event by doing banned books trading cards and a read-out in the lobby of select passages from challenged or banned books.
In the summer, the library put out a call for local artists to do small-scale works on paper inspired by a banned book, artist or author. Visitors to the library can take one of these trading cards per day this week.
Next Saturday from 2-4 p.m., the library will be hosting a readout in its lobby. Local personalities and people off the street will read out loud five-minute passages from banned books. If students are interested in reading a passage from a challenged book, they should contact marketing director Susan Brown at sbrown@lawrencepubliclibrary.org.
Brown said there are a variety of books that have been challenged or banned over the years.
["There] are books like Fifty Shades of Grey, where they say this is smutty and should be kept behind the counter at the library, or classics like Animal Farm that has been banned by communist governments for its political thought," she said. "There have been children's books, often things like Harry Potter because of witchcraft. It is just shocking to
look at the list of books that have been banned over the years.
Ryan Gash, a senior from Derby, said he doesn't think an idea, no matter how terrible, should ever be censored.
"Ideas must enter the market place so that they can be examined and found either to be acceptable or wanting," he said. "Censorging thought is never acceptable, because who determines what is acceptable?"
The University's international area studies department also has its own banned books exhibit showcasing foreign books and films that have been banned in foreign countries. The exhibit is located on the fifth floor of Watson library.
Mary Raple, the international area studies program assistant, said that in many foreign countries, the punishment for writing or publishing a controversial work can range from jail time to execution.
"The right to free speech is often taken for granted in the U.S," she said. "During Banned Books Week, we are reminded of the importance of what our facefathers fought for, and that freedom of speech is not a right that is available to all citizens of all nations."
To see lists of frequently challenged books throughout the decades, visit the American Library Association's website at www.ahl.org/advocacy/banned/banned书籍week.
Edited by Sarah McCabe
FASHION
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
New blog showcases students' style
CARA WINKLEY
cwinkley@kansan.com
It's a Sunday afternoon in a white duplex on Alabama Street where three students are lounging on a couch, computer in lap, each one hard at work clicking away.
John Reynolds, a senior studying graphic design, is working on the new designs. Emily Paulson, a junior studying journalism, is tweeting and pinning away. Supervising the two is Sabrina Liedtke, a senior studying journalism and the founder of the new blog, styleonthehill.com.
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Style on the Hill features pictures of outfits, accessories and objects that Liedtke deems stylish on campus or around Lawrence. The site has only been around for three weeks but is quickly gaining recognition around campus.
Liedtke started the blog as a way to express her creative side on campus.
"On Facebook, it reaches 8,000 people a week." Liedtike said.
Her idea for the blog came after interning at style.com, where she worked closely with Tommy Ton, a photoblogger for the site. She accompanied him when he shot
"There's such a unique style here that no one has documented," Liedtie said. "It's like uncharted territory."
pictures of style on the streets, in department stores and in vintage shops in New York. She applies her new skills and knowledge from her internship to the blog.
"I learned that it's important to express your own personal view and let it reflect what you think about fashion," Liedtke said.
The blog captures KU students' everyday fashion choices, but it also shows the lifestyle of Lawrence through pictures of buildings, art and various activities.
CLASSIFIEDS 7
CROSSWORD 4
Nike shorts and T-shirts are the weekday norm, Liedtke was always asked why she was so dressed up for class. She said girls would come up to her and ask if she had a presentation in class that day. In her home-town of San Francisco, dressing up is the norm and she hopes that this blog will inspire students to dress a little "cooler."
"Style is just art in everyday life."
Liedtke said.
"It's almost like a pop culture hub of Lawrence and KU. There has never been something like this that people can go on and see people they know," said Reynolds, graphic designer for Style on the Hill.
Having lived in a sorority. where
"It has a potential to become really big," Liedtke said. "I'm very lucky that no one else had done this."
Liedke is still taking in the whole experience. She doesn't worry about the future, but she hopes that the blog continues to improve and becomes a bigger presence on campus.
Style on the Hill not only has a blog, but a Pinterest, Twitter, and Facebook page. In the height of blogs and social media, everyone is constantly online. According to The Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project, 86 percent of internet users ages 18 to 29 use social networking sites such as Facebook. In addition to commenting on the blog, the Style on the Hill Facebook page allows students to "tag" their friends in featured photos.
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2012 The University Daily Kansan
— Edited by Sarah McCabe
Today's Weather
The Dole Institute of Politics is hosting "Campaign 2012: Debate Watch" tonight from 7:30-10 p.m.
South wind at 16 mph.
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