US student debt tops $1.31 trillion: Does Betsy DeVos have a plan? - Christian Science Monitor

Student loans were the leading cause for a substantial increase in household debt last year, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said Thursday. While the high balance of US student debt is not news anymore, the new record-high $1.31 trillion balance, up 2.4 percent in the fourth quarter, is another reminder of the severity of a problem that has cast a shadow over the nation in recent years. Loans taken out by undergraduate and graduate students are a key driver of household debt, explained Wilbert van der Klaauw, senior vice president at the New York Fed, in a statement. "Debt held by Americans is approaching its previous peak, yet its composition today is vastly different as the growth in balances has been driven by non-housing debt," he said. http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Education/2017/0218/US-student-debt-tops-1.31-trillion-Does-Betsy-DeVos-have-a-plan