With nearly two-thirds of college students in Massachusetts carrying an average debt of $25,541 the commonwealth faces the prospect of even more borrowing by its young citizens and a drop in attendance at its long list of colleges and universities. "That is one thing we are going to be looking at over hopefully this next year," says Sen. Michael Moore, chair of the Joint Committee on Higher Education, who is concerned about the "the spiraling effect on the economy." Moore's goal is to bring down costs to students to help reduce further debt. But any relief the Statehouse might provide depends largely on Washington. With the continuing gridlock in Congress, the size of that aid is still up in the air.
