Business 2200

Salt Lake Community College

Group Leader Joshua Malcolm
Phone (801) 716-0537

October 23, 2014

Patty Clifford
Financial Aid Advisor
Salt lake Community College
4600 So. Redwood Road
Salt Lake City, UT 84123

Dear Mrs. Clifford

We want to thank you for the time spent in meeting with members of our group in
discussing student debt and how it presents a major concern for students and schools
across the country. With the information you provided we have determined the financial
aid office and students visiting would benefit from having access to pertinent information
regarding the responsibilities of students taking loans from the government. According to
an article entitled Student Loan Assistance, roughly 65% of high-debt student loan
borrowers were surprised or misunderstood aspects of their loans and the borrowing
process.
We propose to assist the financial aid office in creating a pamphlet containing important
information made available for students considering a student loan and providing
assistance in formulating a more informative and educated decision. After interviewing
over 100 students, we found that the alternative programs such as student tuition waivers,
Pepsi Challenge and many other free money awards offered at Salt lake Community
College were almost unheard of when asked if they had ever applied for these programs.
This Pamphlet will assist in increasing students awareness of their financial
responsibility while offering alternative means to seeking assistance; including sections
in scholarships, grants, and tax write-off of student tuitions, describing where to go and
how to apply. There will also include a section devoted to credit, describing benefits of
students loans building credit and helping them finish school, and also the damaging
effects of payment default once education is completed.
This pamphlet will encourage students to become more conservative in how much
financial aid they accept and encouraging the idea of obtaining a part time job in order to
minimize future fiscal burdens. Our proposed pamphlet will also encourage students to
choose more advantageous career paths that would make paying off student debt more
feasible.

Patty Clifford
November 13, 2014
Page 2

Thank you for the opportunity to present this proposal to you. We appreciate your
consideration. You can be assured we will use any and all resources available to make
this pamphlet come to fruition.
Sincerely,

Joshua Malcolm
Group Leader
(Josh13222@gmail.com)

Patty Clifford
November 13, 2014
Page 3

Executive Summary
Salt Lake Community College is a state operated two-year public school with
approximately 60,000 enrolled and participating students through credit and non-credit
courses as well as workshops each year. Founded in 1948 through humble beginnings,
Salt Lake Community College has become one of the greatest vocational institutions in
the Intermountain area. SLCCs fundamental beliefs are based on a student-focused
curriculum and aspire to assist in the ever changing needs of the local population
Students are seeking to further their education now more than ever with a competitive
workforce education is no longer becoming an option. But at what cost? Students often
seek financial support to pay their tuition through various lending programs and in the
end have difficulty paying these loans back and misunderstand the terms of their loan.
According to an article entitled Student Loan Assistance roughly 65% of high-debt
student loan borrowers were surprised or misunderstood aspects of their loans or the
borrowing process
Herein lies the problem. Students ought to be aware of what they are signing to and what
repercussions exist should they fail to fulfill their portion of the contract. In another
article it is stated that there is approximately $864 billion in outstanding federal student
loan debt, while the remaining $150 billion is in private loans.
In assembling a usable pamphlet, the design and information will be compiled using
many published resources. Using different source guides such as information booklets
about federal student loans, varying websites such as the NASFAA, studentaid.ed.gov,
and conducting interviews with the members of the financial aid office as well as students
on campus, we were able to collect a wide variety of evidence which we found
informative in supporting the basis of our proposal.
Our solution for combating the issue of student loan debt is bringing together all of the
data we conducted and received into one pamphlet that will provide all the information a
student needs before considering a student loan. The pamphlet will include pros and cons
of having student loan debt, how to be more aware of scholarship or grant programs
available, being more conservative in how much debt they accrue (possibly considering
being employed while in school), and choosing a career path which will enable them to
pay back loans more efficiently. There will be a section including statistics of students
from various categories with student loans.
We believe the information weve worked diligently to compile will assist many students
in becoming more knowledgeable about the full aspects of student loans and other
options available to them and help strengthen the future generations of students,
offering alternative options in becoming educated without accruing mass amounts of
debt, which could result in defaulted loans, ruined credit and in some circumstances
termination of current employment.

Patty Clifford
November 13, 2014
Page 4

Pamphlet description
Our service learning objective is to produce a pamphlet for SLCC targeting students
considering financial aid. Its purpose will be to inform them of the reality of their
obligations once their education has been completed; also proper use of funds obtained
through the financial aid department and helpful tips on how to manage debt.
This pamphlet will be broken down into 6 pages:
Page 1. Title page Be Smart, Dont ruin your life before it starts.
A catchy heading.
Picture and graphics that will relate to SLCC and Debt.
Page 2. Stats and information that will stimulate awareness about student debt.
Page 3. Stats and info continued.
General info on school loans and debt.
Good debt and bad debt.
What is the difference?
Page 4. Educate yourself.
Amount deeded to graduate.
Salary amount of the field individual going into.
Is it worth the debt considered compared to how much will be made in the desired
career.
Page 5. Alternatives and solutions to avoid unnecessary debt.
Tuition waivers.
Scholarships.
Tax write off.
Government grants.
Conclusion.
Page 6. Contact info and Links.
Info for more information.
Links.
Phone numbers.

Patty Clifford
November 13, 2014
Page 5

Purpose of Pamphlet
Many students dont understand debt and have an attitude: that even if they get student
loans they dont need it doesnt matter because they can pay them off when they get out
of school and start earning more money. This though is not always the case and students
should become more educated about debt management. This pamphlet will educate
students about debt so they can better plan for their future more intelligently. The
following are the issues that the pamphlet will address.
Creating more awareness of student debt at SLCC.
SLCC is an affordable school but there is no aggregate limit on student loans at SLCC.
This brings the problem of students taking out more loans than needed and increasing
their debt more than necessary.
Educate students about how their finance choices today will affect their future.
Many students dont realize how the accumulation of large debt for school could have
detrimental effect on their future. Many students graduate school with absorbent amount
of debt and no job to pay for it. Even students who find a good job after school still live
in poverty due to the fact they have to pay so much on their loans. The ones that are not
as lucky and dont find a good job cant pay to live and pay off their loans as agreed.
Resulting in their credit score getting ruined, making it really hard to buy a car, a house
or any other of lifes essentials.
What options are available to keep debt down?
Many student dont know how many different ways there are to save money on school.
Tuition waver, scholarships, tax write offs are the main ones and will be addressed in the
pamphlet.
Educate on debt management, taxes, and credit and how to use them to their
advantage.
There is good debt and bad debt and many students are unaware of the difference.
Creating large amounts of unnecessary debt by taking out unnecessary loans when going
to school can turn into bad debt really fast. Good debt is more of an asset and is used to
create a better future thus justifying the needed loans to get there.
There are programs available to help students with their loans. SLCC-Specialist II, a
student assistance position that helps students through email, phone and in person
complete the FASA application, understand financial aid requirements/literacy and work
with other benefit programs such as Workforce Services and Native American Tribes.

Patty Clifford
November 13, 2014
Page 6

More students graduate with increased loan debt and misunderstand the complexities of
borrowing. Specialist II directs training and assists students in understanding actual cost
of borrowing and understand the process of applying for aid

Student Debt Can Build or Collapse Your Credit Score

The reality of student loans have made attending school and finishing much easier now
than ever before. With low interest rates and flexible payment options after graduating,
we are truly fortunate for these programs and funding. Like any loan it carries with it an
obligation to pay back what is taken once the recipient finishes school. Our pamphlet
aspires to address not only the necessary general information about loan programs and
funding but also the following ideas, which will help students navigate different avenues
of student debt and building credit.
Taking Money from the Government or Financial Institutions
Its worth noting that student loans are typically treated as installment plans by the
previously mentioned bureaus. So if you pay your student loan payments in full and on
time each month, the credit bureaus will make a record of that on a continuing, 30-day
basis. This will demonstrate to future lenders that you can be trusted to handle money
responsibly.
Loans and Credit Bureaus
Payments made each month are reported to the top three major credit bureaus- Trans
union, Experian and Equifax. Should a post graduate make their payments on time, these
credit bureaus will keep records on a 30 day basis of prompt and on time payments.
These records prove trust in lending and improve credit scores of individuals.
Default and Employment
Students should seriously consider when taking out a loan; they should understand and be
prepared to pay them back after the 6 month grace period after graduation. Default on
payments (failing to make payments on time) can destroy your credit quickly as it will be
reported to the three largest credit rating institutions. In reading an article from The Nest
website it states, A growing number of employers now review credit reports as part of
their background checks on potential new hires. Seeing a history of late payments,
negotiated settlements, claims judgments or actual defaults can influence a personnel
manager to choose another candidate for the job.
There is nothing good that comes from defaulting on a loan. In an article entitled, How
Do Student Loans Affect my Credit Report and Scores, it states, Student lenders have
tremendous power over borrowers. They can garnish wages, disability checks even
Social security.

Patty Clifford
November 13, 2014
Page 7

Stats and Resources

According the graph below a little more than half of students fall short in making
payments on their loans and end up falling into one of the different categories, starting
with forbearance, deferment and eventually defaulting on their loans. For a 10.6% default
for a count of 50,000 students it results in a total of 5,300, for 5 in every 50 students will
default on their loan.
Defaulting on the loan not only affects you but also affects the college you went to,
making it so they will not be able to apply and get the Financing they want to be able to
give loans out to students. Just like if your credit score was too low, you wouldnt be able
to get the same amount if the score was high.
For the 2013-2014 school year, Salt Lake Community College has an average default rate
of 10.6%. Default rates affect a schools ability to offer loans to students. SLCC has the
help of UHEAA (Utah Higher Education Assistance Authority) to help students that are
falling into default contacting them by email, post mail, phone calls and SMS messaging
to help with their student loan needs. Excludes loans in grace, in-school status. 51% of
borrowers are not repaying loans on time, as expected. As of June 30, 2014:

Patty Clifford
November 13, 2014
Page 8

Organization of Project
Responsibilities:
With prior experience in creating business documents and Business communication, we
as a group are confident that we will fulfill our responsibilities in creating a useful
Pamphlet educating students about school debt.
Our Responsibilities:
In creating this pamphlet we as a team will compile useful data, information and then
organize it in a simple easy to understand way. We than will incorporate it into a
pamphlet for the use of students that attend SLCC. The fallowing will be a list of team
members and responsibilities that each one will fulfill:
Leader - Josh Malcolm- Outline of project, organize data to be used in the Pamphlet
Scribe - Cameron Owen- Statistics research and compile data and graphs to be used as
reliable resources.
Organizer Joscif Raigne Organization, editing and communication lead.

Patty Clifford
November 13, 2014
Page 9

Designer and graphics Noel Curtis Pamphlet designer and installment of graphics
and any other visual tasks.
We as a group, once pamphlet is created, will each edit and create feedback and apply
these edits in order to strengthen the pamphlet purpose.
Site preparation:
It also will be our responsibly to gather campus info in order to find the best places to
install these pamphlets on campus. With primary targets already known: the financial aid
office and student advisor offices. All other installment locations will need to be in
populated, easy accessible locations.

Conclusion
We appreciate the prospect of submitting the proposed information for your approval.
We are confident the information weve collected and compiled suggests a solution that
can assist and provide knowledge to students who are currently enrolled in college and
the future generations of students. Based on the interviews, exploration and evaluation,
our proposal offers knowledgeable intake as to what precautions students can take when
considering student loans and how it might affect their future financial situation.
As a team, we feel confident submitting newly found research and information to Salt
Lake Community College for review. Our main objective is to provide students with all
possible aspects and information about student loan debt and to ensure there are no
unanswered questions. We hope the evidence presented in this proposal will be
considered informative and used as a beneficial tool for incoming students as well as
students who are currently enrolled.
Should you feel there are any discrepancies with the information which has been
provided, or require further evidence supporting the proposal, please contact Josh
Malcolm, who will send the necessary documents that meet your requirements.
We look forward to hearing your assessment.

Patty Clifford
November 13, 2014
Page 10

Sources

https://www.dosomething.org/facts/11-facts-about-college-debt

http://budgeting.thenest.com/debt-affect-job-22777.html

American Student Assistance. "Student Loan Debt Statistics." American Student

Assistance. Accessed April 28, 2014.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/20/student-debtdistress_n_5682736.html
-SLCC Financial Aid - IBP Presentation 2013-14