The Providence, RI uni is trying to raise $120m in order to rid all student loans from financial aid packages received by their undergrads.
![Brown University wants to nix 100% of their student loan debt](https://20627419.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hub/20627419/hubfs/The%20Hustle/Assets/Images/1704971725-brown-university-student-debt.webp?width=595&height=400&name=1704971725-brown-university-student-debt.webp)
This will make Brown the 16th US college (and 6th Ivy League school) to give their undergrads the gift of living free from the impending post-college kick in the nuts so many of us are currently enduring.
Fer realzies
Student loan balances have jumped more than 150% over the past decade — that’s $833m since 2007 — and with the average outstanding individual student loan balance at $34k, the national student loan deficit is now at a record high of $1.4 trillion.
According to CNBC, that makes a college education the second-biggest expenditure an individual makes in a lifetime, just under homeownership.
Let’s not hoist the Ivy Leaguers on our shoulders just yet
First off, Brown is able to do this because there are so few low-income students. According to recent studies, Brown has more students in the top 1% than the bottom 60%.
And second, it’s not like this money is coming from Brown’s coffers: they’re raising the money, and since tuition at Brown is just south of $60k a year, it makes you wonder why they aren’t just, you know, lowering tuition.