The College Investor Audio Show

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Free Community College Pays For Itself, New NBER Study Finds Sep 15, 2026

Show notes

A new NBER working paper finds that Tennessee Promise, the nation’s first statewide free community college program, increased college enrollment, boosted degree completion, raised early-career earnings, and generated enough new tax revenue to more than cover its cost. The researchers estimate the program’s marginal value of public funds is infinite, meaning every public dollar spent produced positive benefits at no net cost to the government.

The study, from economists at the University of Tennessee, Saint Mary’s College of California, and the Tennessee Office of Evidence and Impact, tracks the program from its 2009 single-county pilot in Knox County through statewide rollout in 2015. Tennessee’s model became the template for the more than 20 states that now offer some version of free community college, most using the same last-dollar structure.

The program’s design is simple by financial aid standards. Any Tennessee high school graduate qualifies regardless of income, grades, or field of study, as long as they apply on time, complete mentoring and community service requirements, and enroll at a community college or college of applied technology the fall after graduation. That simplicity make it easy for students to benefit.

Senators Demand ED Account for $1 Billion Student Loan Fund as Defaults Hit 9M Sep 14, 2026

Show notes

Four Senate Democrats want the Department of Education to provide answers on how it spent a $1 billion student loan administration fund created by last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act. In a September 2 letter to Education Secretary Linda McMahon (PDF File), Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) say the agency has already spent roughly $216 million from the fund without explaining what it spent them money on. Meanwhile, the number of borrowers in default has climbed to a record high.

The $216 million figure comes from the Department of Education’s own Fiscal Year 2027 budget request, which reports that amount obligated as of the start of FY2026 and projects that more than $450 million will still be unspent when FY2027 begins. The senators note that Section 82005 of the OBBBA requires the money to go toward “administrative costs” of the federal student loan program, including servicing, but built in no reporting or oversight requirement.

New Bill Would Use IRS Data To Automatically Put Struggling Student Loan Borrowers Into Low Payments Sep 11, 2026

Show notes

Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-Ore.) reintroduced the Streamlining Income-driven, Manageable Payments on Loans for Education (SIMPLE) Act on September 2, 2026, with six House Democratic cosponsors. The bill (H.R. 10220) would require the Department of Education to contact federal borrowers once they are 31 days past due, show them what they would owe under every income-driven repayment plan they qualify for, and then move them into the lowest-payment plan automatically if they are still delinquent at 75 days.

The bill has been sent to the House Education and Workforce Committee and the Ways and Means Committee. NASFAA reports a similar bill was first introduced in 2016 and last reintroduced in 2024, and this version is largely unchanged apart from updates that add the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) to the list of eligible income-driven plans.

How College Refunds Work Plus The Benefits Of Tuition Insurance Sep 08, 2026

Show notes

College tuition refunds are rare. Many colleges only give a full refund if you withdraw before the first day of class, and most stop refunding anything at all within about a month of the start date. Check your own school's schedule now, because the window closes faster than most families expect. If a withdrawal is on the table, the financial impact of dropping out of college goes well beyond the lost semester.

The numbers make this worth taking seriously. For 2025-26, the College Board puts average published tuition and fees at $11,950 for in-state students at public four-year schools and $45,000 at private nonprofit four-year schools. Add housing, food, and other costs and the average full budget is $30,990 at a public four-year school and $65,470 at a private one. If you're wondering when those bills come due, see when you actually pay for college.

That's a car-sized check written every semester. Students and parents footing the bill want some protection if something goes wrong, and most don't realize how little protection the school's own refund policy provides. That's a big reason tuition insurance has become a standard line on more college bills.

NIL Money And Taxes: What College Athletes Owe The IRS, The FAFSA, And Their Agent Sep 04, 2026

Show notes

College athletes are getting paid, and many of them don’t know what to do with it to maximize their long term wealth. The money arrives with no tax withheld, no benefits attached, no HR department explaining anything, and a set of rules that punish anyone who assumes a paycheck is a paycheck.

The window is short, too. NCAA data puts the odds of a draft-eligible football player getting drafted at 1.4%, and men’s basketball at 1.0%, while the NCAA’s own GOALS research found roughly 74% of FBS football players believe they’ll go pro. That gap is where the financial damage happens.

The money comes from selling their Name, Image, and Likeness, or NIL. And it’s big business in college sports today.

Here’s how the money works, what it costs, and what to do with what’s left.

ED Changes Grad PLUS Rule: Credit Hours Now Decide Who Keeps Uncapped Student Loans Sep 03, 2026

Show notes

The Education Department has quietly changed how it decides whether continuing graduate students can still borrow uncapped Grad PLUS loans, and the change is already generating denials for students who have been enrolled.

During an August 12 Federal Student Aid webinar on the implementation of new loan limits and the interim exception for continuing students, FSA staff told schools to calculate “expected time to credential” using credit hours completed rather than time enrolled. That formula determines how much longer a grandfathered borrower keeps access to Grad PLUS after the program formally ended on July 1, 2026.

The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators called it a significant departure from prior guidance, noting that ED had previously told schools to measure the difference between program length in weeks, months, or years and the portion the student finished before July 1.

Education Department spokesperson Ellen Keast told Inside Higher Ed the approach is “not anything new” and had come up in earlier virtual office hours, though the department did not point to where it was written down. When ED finalized the loan limits and new repayment plans, the written record pointed the other way: the final rule text at 34 CFR 685.102 and the department’s May 20 loan limits FAQ both describe the calculation in terms of time.

Parent PLUS Caps At $20,000 A Year, Leaving Cosigners Fewer Options In Year 4 Sep 02, 2026

Show notes

As of July 1, 2026, new Parent PLUS borrowers are capped at $20,000 per dependent student per year and $65,000 for that student's entire undergraduate career. Before this change, Parent PLUS went all the way up to the school's full certified cost of attendance.

For families at expensive schools, that program was the entire plan. It closed whatever the aid package didn't, and it did so without much scrutiny. The problem you notice - $20,000 per year doesn’t translate to $65,000 if your child attends college for 4 or even 5 years… that’s a problem.

In partnership with Student Choice, we’re going to break down what borrowing for college looks like, and why you may want to consider an education line of credit.

PSLF Payment Counts Drop as Education Department Corrects IDR Adjustment Errors Sep 01, 2026

Show notes

Borrowers chasing Public Service Loan Forgiveness have spent the past two weeks watching their qualifying payment counts move in the wrong direction. Some lost six months. Some lost more.

The fear running through borrower forums is that the Trump administration is quietly unwinding PSLF, or reversing the one-time income-driven repayment account adjustment that brought millions of borrowers years closer to forgiveness. Based on the accounts we’ve reviewed and what the Department has confirmed on the record, that is not what’s happening.

What is happening is narrower, more technical, and because the Department has explained almost none of it publicly, considerably more damaging to borrower trust than it needed to be. A banner on StudentAid.gov has told borrowers only that their counts are wrong and that a fix is coming. And here’s what were seeing analyzing dozens of reports and borrower accounts.

Sanders Bill Would Ban Social Security Garnishment For Defaulted Student Loans Aug 31, 2026

Show notes

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) announced on August 17 that he will introduce the Stop Social Security Garnishment Act of 2026, a bill that would permanently bar the federal government from seizing Social Security payments to collect defaulted federal student loans. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Ed Markey (D-MA) are cosponsoring the bill, which comes as more than 9 million borrowers are in default (nearly 1 in 4 Americans with federal student loans).

The bill itself (PDF File) amends Title IV of the Higher Education Act to add a new Section 493E, which states that no payments due under the Social Security Act can be offset under the federal debt collection statute when a borrower defaults on a federal student loan. The protection would cover retirement benefits and Social Security Disability Insurance, and would take effect immediately if the bill passes.

College Is Not Risk-Free: The Hidden Costs Families Never Expect Aug 29, 2026

Show notes

College is not a risk-free investment - and one $15-a-month decision can save families from a five-figure mistake. GradGuard CEO John Fees breaks down the hidden risks most parents never budget for, from tuition loss and academic fees to dorm fires, theft, and accidental damage that can turn move-in season into a financial disaster.

Host Robert Farrington and John Fees get specific about what actually happens when a student leaves school for medical or mental health reasons, why one in three freshmen don’t return, and why the most important college costs are often the ones schools don’t refund. You’ll discover how tuition insurance really works, why the “renter’s insurance” label can hide major exclusions, and what makes a policy a true no-gotcha safety net for college families.

John shares the real-life claims that have shaped GradGuard, including dorm sprinkler disasters that can trigger more than $60,000 in damage, the electronic limitations buried in many standard policies, and why pre-existing conditions, concussions, mono, and other legitimate disruptions matter more than most families realize. He also explains why schools are cash dependent, why housing and academic fees are rarely covered, and how the right policy can give students a do-over instead of a permanent financial setback.

If you’re sending a freshman to campus, paying tuition out of pocket, using a 529, or carrying student loans, this episode is essential listening before classes start. It’s a practical guide to protecting one of the biggest investments your family will ever make - and avoiding the kind of regret that comes from learning too late what your policy actually covers.