"This spring, the University of Pittsburgh will pilot a 'pay-it-forward' financial aid program that offers students up to $5,000 upon graduation to pay down their student debt. In return, the university asks, but does not require, graduates of the program to contribute to a fund that will finance the same debt-relief scholarships for future students in the program," Inside Higher Ed reports. 

"Rohit Anand, a recent Pittsburgh graduate, hopes the Panthers Forward program will serve as one answer to the growing student debt crisis. According to the Institute for College Access and Success, two in three college seniors in the United States graduate with debt, and those students walk away with an average of $28,650 in loans. In Pennsylvania it's worse -- graduates with debt leave with an average of $36,854 in loans.

Anand and his team at Altian Education, a company he co-founded to develop and promote community pledge networks like this one, designed the program alongside Patrick Gallagher, University of Pittsburgh chancellor. Their goal was to create something that 'gave students more flexibility to pay for future students without the burden of loans,' he said.

The University of Pittsburgh is currently Altian Education's first and only client. The university contracted the company develop the program, and Anand said that it 'does not make any money from the Panthers Forward program itself.' All contributions from Panthers Forward alumni will directly fund future debt-relief scholarships.

The first group will include 150 students, and any graduating senior with subsidized or unsubsidized federal loans can apply online. The money will be sent directly to the loan servicer at the time of graduation. For now, the university won’t apply the $5,000 to private loan debt.

.... Justin Draeger, president and CEO of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, is optimistic about the program’s success given Pittsburgh’s long-standing commitment to financial aid.

'On a larger scale, this is kind of what’s supposed to happen when you pay state and national taxes,' he said. 'This is how federal student aid came about … and now we have a program that is doing that at a hyperlocal level.'"

NASFAA's "Notable Headlines" section highlights media coverage of financial aid to help members stay up to date with the latest news. Inclusion in Today's News does not imply endorsement of the material or guarantee the accuracy of information presented.

Publication Date: 10/19/2018