Please don’t forgive my student loans. Change the system instead. | Opinion

Here we go again. For the sixth time, the pause on student loan repayments is getting extended, now through Aug. 31.

Unfortunately, “kicking the can down the road” will not solve the student debt crisis.

According to The Institute for College Access and Success, 2020 graduates in Pennsylvania had an average debt load of nearly $40,000, the third-highest amongst states. Collectively, Pennsylvania student borrowers owe an estimated $71.5 billion.

For years now, members of the public and politicians alike have called for some type of forgiveness of this crushing debt. But what?

The losers in this game are the American people. Another pause and talks of forgiveness provide no incentive for those who are gainfully employed and should be making payments. It frustrates people who have already made sacrifices to pay back their loans and adds extra confusion on when and whether financially stressed folks should plan for the restart.

“The losers in this game are the American people.”

Meanwhile, we keep issuing new loans to aspiring learners. What will happen when their debt begins to balloon?

Instead of loan forgiveness, we need to develop a new way to help students finance their education. The best way forward is to reduce interest rates and — most importantly — make it easier to pay off debt.

Of course, none of these solutions has the same headline appeal as erasing student debt outright. I have student debt myself and would appreciate forgiveness — but that doesn’t mean it’s the best policy.

I’ve been lucky. I’ve had a job since graduation, and I also tried to limit “nice-to-have” purchases so that I could keep making headway on my loans. During the pandemic, the moratorium on debt repayments has been nice; I’ve saved what I would have owed (plus interest) and plan to repay a significant amount of that debt once (and if) the government requires it.

I realize that not everyone is able to save as easily as I am. Still, a quick fix isn’t the answer to a long-term, systemic problem that affects some people more than others.

Since the Civil Rights Act, we have encouraged and given historically disadvantaged people greater access to higher education, but these same students — Black women in particular — graduate with disproportionally more debt. Instead of promoting class mobility, education is intensifying the racial wealth gap. It’s an utter disaster.

» READ MORE: I am one of 43 million Americans in student debt | Opinion

There is no shortage of articles calling student debt a crisis. But, as renowned sociologist Pedro Noguera says, a “crisis” implies a short-term event, and that once the crisis passes, we will return to a previous, superior state.

Is continuing to saddle new students — particularly those who are already disadvantaged — with crushing debt superior? Of course not.

We cannot delay payments indefinitely and preserve a pernicious system. And we still need to provide people access to higher education so that they can attain that mobility that often remains elusive.

Let’s compromise. (I know, a novel concept for Congress.) How about re-revamping the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program under the college-going/public good framework? In the latest version of the program, people who work in public service can have their student loans forgiven within 10 years, and recently the Biden administration made it easier for applicants to count prior payments toward the 10-year requirement.

So, let’s think about the public good and open PSLF to all. In a new system — perhaps called Public “Good” Loan Forgiveness — everyone with student debt, no matter their job, could be automatically enrolled into a 10-year repayment plan based on their income. If they have made 120 payments within a decade, their debt would be cleared. Even if these jobs aren’t directly performing public service, the program could recognize that, as a society, we benefit from having people with higher education. And the program should accept prior payments made since 2007, when PSLF started.

I know it’s a long shot, but I’d love to see Sens. Bob Casey and Pat Toomey leading this initiative; Pennsylvania is one of the few states with senators from both major parties (not to mention evenly split House members), which could model a bipartisan effort.

This program will need some accountability teeth, as this new structure might encourage universities to raise tuition (another core problem) since forgiveness is essentially guaranteed after a decade. Beyond loans, more thinking will be needed to address tuition accountability and graduation rates, as those who leave with debt but no degree will still have challenges paying back loans.

If executive action is taken to forgive loans without long-term solutions, we will find ourselves in the same situation when future classes graduate.

Avery M. D. Davis is a doctoral student in education at Johns Hopkins University. His research centers on postsecondary innovation and students’ financial aid experiences.