Dick Durbin: “time is running out for the Senate to act to save the Federal Perkins Loan Program. If we do nothing, this critical…”

“time is running out for the Senate to act to save the Federal Perkins Loan Program. If we do nothing, this critical program that makes college affordable for 30,000 students per year in Illinois will expire at the end of the day. Perkins was first authorized as part of the National Defense Education Act of 1958; and, unlike Federal student loans that we often think about, Perkins is a campus-based loan program. Participating colleges and universities make low-interest federally subsidized loans to students with exceptional financial need. The program also offers forgiveness and cancellation options to qualifying borrowers. The real key to Perkins is the flexibility it offers to schools to provide financial aid to students to make up for gaps in costs that Pell or other financial aid may not cover. If a student has an unexpected change in the financial situation of their family, say a parent loses a job, Perkins allows a college or university to step in and provide aid to that student to allow them to continue their studies. The campus-based nature of the program means that students' individual financial needs can be met more effectively, and in my home State of Illinois, more than 150 institutions of higher education provide Perkins loans. College presidents and financial aid administrators across Illinois have told me that without this key piece to the Federal financial aid puzzle, many students may be left behind, unable to afford a college education.…”