RALEIGH, N.C. — President Joe Biden has announced his plan to address student loan debt. Some have voiced frustration over the debt cancellation, saying it applies only to some people and doesn’t benefit others.

What You Need To Know

  • N.C. State junior Amelia Allende Mendes doesn’t have any student loans, but she still favors President Joe Biden’s plan to cancel student loan debt

  • Allende Mendes, 20, wants the Biden administration to do more, such as offering a continuing education stipend to high school students

  • She thinks student loan forgiveness will incentivize minority students to pursue a higher education

Amelia Allende Mendes, a junior at N.C. State, doesn’t have any student loans, but she wants this relief for others.

Allende Mendes, 20, is grateful to have a full ride through scholarships.

“I’ve been lucky enough that my academic efforts and subsequent success has led to me receiving multiple scholarship opportunities, which have significantly lessened the financial burden of college for me,” Allende Mendes said. “Now I know that’s not usually the case for most people. And I can understand that that is a large determining factor in whether or not they continue with higher education.”

Forty-five million Americans are drowning in $1.7 trillion in student debt. While Allende Mendes doesn’t fall into that category, she welcomes the move to offer relief to so many.

“Most of my friends are undergraduates. But my friends who are graduates, who are now graduating graduate school, and who are now really embarking on their first real jobs are starting to budget,” Allende Mendes said. “And they’re saying, you know, ‘I’m trying to set aside so much of my paycheck every two weeks for my student loans.’ So it’s already playing a very instant role in their lives.”

She believes forgiving student loan debt is only a short-term solution. And that the Biden administration should offer more economic incentives, such as a continuing education stipend to high school students.

“I think that in order to just kind of make everything more equitable, rising freshmen in college or just that age, people who are graduating high school, should also receive a $10,000 incentive to pursue a higher education, whether that be a four-year university, or community college or a trade school,” she said. “And eventually people who earn college degrees tend to make more later on, and they therefore pay more taxes, and contribute more to the economy.”

Related

Allende Mendes is a Latina, with Costa Rican, Chilean and Brazilian heritage. Getting a higher education has always been a big deal in her family.

Allende Mendes says student loan forgiveness will be an incentive for minority students to pursue a higher education and a way for them to increase their earning potential.