How loan forgiveness tied to for-profit colleges is affecting former Minnesota students
A student walks to class at Globe University in Woodbury. The college is one of 1,600 nationwide suing the federal government over new rules regulating student loans at for-profit colleges.
Tim Post | MPR File
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Audio transcript
CATHY WURZER: You heard Emily say that earlier today the president made a long awaited announcement on student loan debt forgiveness. Last week, the US department of education announced it's forgiving $3.9 billion in student loan debt for students who attended ITT Technical Institute between January 1st of 2005 and September of 2016.
Ashley Sibri graduated from the now closed for-profit college in Eden Prairie back in 2010 with a degree and a boatload of debt. So how will this debt relief impact her? We're going to find out. Ashley's on the line. Good to talk with you. Thanks for being here.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Hi, Cathy. How are you today?
CATHY WURZER: I'm fine, thank you so much. I understand you attended ITT for two years. When you graduated, how much student loan debt did you owe?
ASHLEY SIBRI: So at the end of my two years at ITT Tech, I had a little over $65,000 in federal loans and about $12,000 in what they call their PEAKS private loans.
CATHY WURZER: So that's about, what, $75,000?
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes.
CATHY WURZER: Wow, OK. You graduated from high school in Little Falls, moved to Bloomington, is that right?
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes, that's correct.
CATHY WURZER: OK, so what were you-- what kind of work were you doing back then?
ASHLEY SIBRI: Right after I graduated high school, I went to Central Lakes College up in Northern Minnesota. Got my CNA, and I was working towards my LPN. Living up there, I was working in healthcare, because that's where I felt that I made the most impact. But once I was able to move to the Twin Cities area, then I could broaden my horizon and went towards my career path of being in IT.
CATHY WURZER: OK. So something in the computer field. So you landed on ITT for classes.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes. It was one of those situations. I come from lower income housing, lower income family. And I didn't have as many opportunities to go to some of the bigger name colleges. ITT Tech was out there advertising big time. This was probably about 2007, 2008. And I went in. I did a tour of their school, and they basically the same day were like, you can get in here.
And for someone like me who didn't think I maybe even had an opportunity to go to college again because my previous college was all grant-- by now I was not eligible for grants anymore-- it was super appealing to me. I was ready to go to school. I wanted to further my education and get a better career.
CATHY WURZER: And they had the kind of degree you were looking for.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yeah. I mean, I was looking to be a programmer at the time, so I was looking into software programming. And their degree that they had was software applications and programming. It was perfect.
CATHY WURZER: So this is sounding like it was a pretty good deal. How was your schooling at ITT?
ASHLEY SIBRI: I will say overall, I did get a good education there. The teachers were great. The hours were wonderful. It was geared towards someone like me who was working two jobs at the time. So I could be able to take evening classes and be able to still get a two year degree within two years.
CATHY WURZER: Now, some folks may remember the story. In your situation, you were in the second year of your two year schooling to get the degree. And so you're pretty close to finishing. And then the schools finance office college because they said you had run out of funding, right?
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes. So I was probably around six, 10-ish credits away from graduation. I was in the middle of a class, and they called me to the administrative office and told me that I had ran out of federal loans. And that I had to get them the money basically that day or I would be asked to leave school and I would not be able to finish my degree.
CATHY WURZER: Oh my goodness. You must have a heart attack.
ASHLEY SIBRI: I did. I was I was devastated. I remember being in tears thinking, I've come this far and I've put so much time, effort, and then federal grant money or federal loan money into this that, it was all for nothing. And then that's when they slid an envelope over to me basically saying, well, we have an option for you. We have this thing called PEAKs private loans. You can apply, sit down with me at the computer, we'll fill it out right now. You'll be approved, you can go back to class.
CATHY WURZER: Oh my goodness.
ASHLEY SIBRI: I was young. I didn't know much. I didn't know any better. I barely knew how to manage my own finances at the time. I was, what, 20. And I did it. I didn't know what else to do in that moment. I felt very pressured and scared, I guess, to lose this opportunity.
CATHY WURZER: But the interest rates must have been astronomical.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yeah. And I don't have the paperwork in front of me. I was trying to look it up, but I know it was in the upper teens percent-wise. At least around 15%, 17% interest rate, if not more.
CATHY WURZER: So you took the loans. And did you happen to hear about other ITT students in the same boat?
ASHLEY SIBRI: Absolutely. As soon as I started talking about it to people, I started hearing people saying, oh my goodness, this happened to me, too. They did the same thing to me, too. And I don't know how many other people that didn't speak up actually happened to. But I felt like I wasn't alone when I was telling this story. I was embarrassed by it, obviously, and still am today. But to know that I wasn't the only one that was fooled into this.
CATHY WURZER: So you did get a degree and you went on to get a job.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes.
CATHY WURZER: OK. Gosh. So now it's August of, what, 2022. And you got a call, I understand, just last week.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes. So if I take you back to about 2017, that's when I started hearing all these things about ITT Tech. And this time, I had about a two-year-old boy. I already had a kid. I was working on my career. I started hearing things about ITT Tech and about fraudulent lending. And at the time, I was in over my head. I wasn't making enough yet to really pay for everything on top of my student loans that were being paid on.
And so I reached out to the attorney general's office. And I said, I've heard some things about ITT Tech. I sent them a bunch of documentation. And they got me-- they started a file for me, basically, to go against this borrower's defense application. Well, nothing was-- it just sat there for years. I mean, obviously until last week when I got a phone call from the attorney general's office saying, guess what? The president has finally made movement on this, and these applications for borrower defense plus anybody else that has the loans from ITT Tech will be forgiven.
CATHY WURZER: Oh. I can't imagine what you said.
ASHLEY SIBRI: I was just in shock. I was in disbelief, to be honest. It felt like it was never going to actually happen. It was like one of those little things, like they're just dangling it there and you're never actually going to see it happen. I was in shock, speechless. And then it hit. And then when after I got off the phone with the attorney general's office, it just hit me.
And I was in disbelief. I cried. I couldn't believe that it finally came to this, that after all of this work. Because on top of the borrower's defense, some people may or may not know, there was also something going on with some Harvard students had started a class action lawsuit also against ITT Tech. So I'd also been in contact with them and sending them my story and my information and participating in that. So this has been on my mind for multiple years. And to see that end is just, it's pretty amazing.
CATHY WURZER: And ITT Tech went out of business.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes. For fraudulent lending. And on top of that, they have false promises of transferable credits, which also affected me to further my education.
CATHY WURZER: So by the way, your credit report has also been repaired, right? I mean, this all worked out quite well.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yeah. So I thankfully never went behind in my federal student loans. I put them in forbearance. However, that PEAKS loan did affect my credit score. And now with everything with that, my credit has not been affected by this now.
CATHY WURZER: OK. Wow--
ASHLEY SIBRI: None of it will show up on my credit report.
CATHY WURZER: You did a lot of work around this. And just the relief must just be palpable. You must just feel, as they say, so good. Your story really is quite instructive, and I appreciate you sharing it with the rest of us.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Of course.
CATHY WURZER: Thank you so much. And I wish you all best.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Thank you so much. I was happy to speak with you today and share my story. And hopefully, other people can feel like they're not alone in this.
CATHY WURZER: Thank you, Ashley. Ashley Sibri has been with us. The US Department of Education announced that her student loan debt and that of 208,000 former students of ITT Technical College would be discharged. That's a debt totaling almost $4 billion.
Ashley Sibri graduated from the now closed for-profit college in Eden Prairie back in 2010 with a degree and a boatload of debt. So how will this debt relief impact her? We're going to find out. Ashley's on the line. Good to talk with you. Thanks for being here.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Hi, Cathy. How are you today?
CATHY WURZER: I'm fine, thank you so much. I understand you attended ITT for two years. When you graduated, how much student loan debt did you owe?
ASHLEY SIBRI: So at the end of my two years at ITT Tech, I had a little over $65,000 in federal loans and about $12,000 in what they call their PEAKS private loans.
CATHY WURZER: So that's about, what, $75,000?
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes.
CATHY WURZER: Wow, OK. You graduated from high school in Little Falls, moved to Bloomington, is that right?
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes, that's correct.
CATHY WURZER: OK, so what were you-- what kind of work were you doing back then?
ASHLEY SIBRI: Right after I graduated high school, I went to Central Lakes College up in Northern Minnesota. Got my CNA, and I was working towards my LPN. Living up there, I was working in healthcare, because that's where I felt that I made the most impact. But once I was able to move to the Twin Cities area, then I could broaden my horizon and went towards my career path of being in IT.
CATHY WURZER: OK. So something in the computer field. So you landed on ITT for classes.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes. It was one of those situations. I come from lower income housing, lower income family. And I didn't have as many opportunities to go to some of the bigger name colleges. ITT Tech was out there advertising big time. This was probably about 2007, 2008. And I went in. I did a tour of their school, and they basically the same day were like, you can get in here.
And for someone like me who didn't think I maybe even had an opportunity to go to college again because my previous college was all grant-- by now I was not eligible for grants anymore-- it was super appealing to me. I was ready to go to school. I wanted to further my education and get a better career.
CATHY WURZER: And they had the kind of degree you were looking for.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yeah. I mean, I was looking to be a programmer at the time, so I was looking into software programming. And their degree that they had was software applications and programming. It was perfect.
CATHY WURZER: So this is sounding like it was a pretty good deal. How was your schooling at ITT?
ASHLEY SIBRI: I will say overall, I did get a good education there. The teachers were great. The hours were wonderful. It was geared towards someone like me who was working two jobs at the time. So I could be able to take evening classes and be able to still get a two year degree within two years.
CATHY WURZER: Now, some folks may remember the story. In your situation, you were in the second year of your two year schooling to get the degree. And so you're pretty close to finishing. And then the schools finance office college because they said you had run out of funding, right?
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes. So I was probably around six, 10-ish credits away from graduation. I was in the middle of a class, and they called me to the administrative office and told me that I had ran out of federal loans. And that I had to get them the money basically that day or I would be asked to leave school and I would not be able to finish my degree.
CATHY WURZER: Oh my goodness. You must have a heart attack.
ASHLEY SIBRI: I did. I was I was devastated. I remember being in tears thinking, I've come this far and I've put so much time, effort, and then federal grant money or federal loan money into this that, it was all for nothing. And then that's when they slid an envelope over to me basically saying, well, we have an option for you. We have this thing called PEAKs private loans. You can apply, sit down with me at the computer, we'll fill it out right now. You'll be approved, you can go back to class.
CATHY WURZER: Oh my goodness.
ASHLEY SIBRI: I was young. I didn't know much. I didn't know any better. I barely knew how to manage my own finances at the time. I was, what, 20. And I did it. I didn't know what else to do in that moment. I felt very pressured and scared, I guess, to lose this opportunity.
CATHY WURZER: But the interest rates must have been astronomical.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yeah. And I don't have the paperwork in front of me. I was trying to look it up, but I know it was in the upper teens percent-wise. At least around 15%, 17% interest rate, if not more.
CATHY WURZER: So you took the loans. And did you happen to hear about other ITT students in the same boat?
ASHLEY SIBRI: Absolutely. As soon as I started talking about it to people, I started hearing people saying, oh my goodness, this happened to me, too. They did the same thing to me, too. And I don't know how many other people that didn't speak up actually happened to. But I felt like I wasn't alone when I was telling this story. I was embarrassed by it, obviously, and still am today. But to know that I wasn't the only one that was fooled into this.
CATHY WURZER: So you did get a degree and you went on to get a job.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes.
CATHY WURZER: OK. Gosh. So now it's August of, what, 2022. And you got a call, I understand, just last week.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes. So if I take you back to about 2017, that's when I started hearing all these things about ITT Tech. And this time, I had about a two-year-old boy. I already had a kid. I was working on my career. I started hearing things about ITT Tech and about fraudulent lending. And at the time, I was in over my head. I wasn't making enough yet to really pay for everything on top of my student loans that were being paid on.
And so I reached out to the attorney general's office. And I said, I've heard some things about ITT Tech. I sent them a bunch of documentation. And they got me-- they started a file for me, basically, to go against this borrower's defense application. Well, nothing was-- it just sat there for years. I mean, obviously until last week when I got a phone call from the attorney general's office saying, guess what? The president has finally made movement on this, and these applications for borrower defense plus anybody else that has the loans from ITT Tech will be forgiven.
CATHY WURZER: Oh. I can't imagine what you said.
ASHLEY SIBRI: I was just in shock. I was in disbelief, to be honest. It felt like it was never going to actually happen. It was like one of those little things, like they're just dangling it there and you're never actually going to see it happen. I was in shock, speechless. And then it hit. And then when after I got off the phone with the attorney general's office, it just hit me.
And I was in disbelief. I cried. I couldn't believe that it finally came to this, that after all of this work. Because on top of the borrower's defense, some people may or may not know, there was also something going on with some Harvard students had started a class action lawsuit also against ITT Tech. So I'd also been in contact with them and sending them my story and my information and participating in that. So this has been on my mind for multiple years. And to see that end is just, it's pretty amazing.
CATHY WURZER: And ITT Tech went out of business.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yes. For fraudulent lending. And on top of that, they have false promises of transferable credits, which also affected me to further my education.
CATHY WURZER: So by the way, your credit report has also been repaired, right? I mean, this all worked out quite well.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Yeah. So I thankfully never went behind in my federal student loans. I put them in forbearance. However, that PEAKS loan did affect my credit score. And now with everything with that, my credit has not been affected by this now.
CATHY WURZER: OK. Wow--
ASHLEY SIBRI: None of it will show up on my credit report.
CATHY WURZER: You did a lot of work around this. And just the relief must just be palpable. You must just feel, as they say, so good. Your story really is quite instructive, and I appreciate you sharing it with the rest of us.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Of course.
CATHY WURZER: Thank you so much. And I wish you all best.
ASHLEY SIBRI: Thank you so much. I was happy to speak with you today and share my story. And hopefully, other people can feel like they're not alone in this.
CATHY WURZER: Thank you, Ashley. Ashley Sibri has been with us. The US Department of Education announced that her student loan debt and that of 208,000 former students of ITT Technical College would be discharged. That's a debt totaling almost $4 billion.
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