Parents looking for some debt relief can find aid trough a tuition tax credit of up to $2,500. Part of Obama’s stimulus bill is the higher-education tax credit. The stimulus, signed into law in February, should hopefully help Americans who are financially struggling.

This particular tax credit aims to help parents who are paying for college tuition this year. One of the benefits of this credit is that it requires no additional paperwork or a hefty financial aid application. Students only need to file their tax returns on time to take advantage of it. Jackie Perlman, analyst for H & R Block stated, “This will definitely help people.”

Complicated tax code

Like all tax code, the tuition credit does come with some complexity. In return for sorting through its regulations, however is a “bigger and more inclusive [tuition credit] than previous higher-education tax credits, which were so complicated that more than a quarter of eligible taxpayers failed [to get them],” according to Perlman.

Those who were able to collect normally saw a return of about $900. This time around the $2,500 tuition credit promises to be much simpler to manage. Perlman stated, “Any professional tax preparer knows how to use the credit and parents filing themselves can still do it relatively easily.”

How the credit works

Perlman explained the rules by sorting out some of the details:

• Taxpayers can utilize the credit for a reduction of their 2009 taxes.
• The credit can be up to $2,500, and even if taxpayers owe no money, they can still get a credit of $1,000.
• The tuition credit covers tuition, fees and books that were paid for throughout the 2009 to 2010 school year.
• The tuition credit is available to undergraduates who are enrolled at least half-time.
• Taxpayers with $80,000 adjusted gross incomes or $160,000 jointly-filed incomes are eligible for the full tax credit.
• Taxpayers who earn more than $90,000 and $180,000, single and joint filers, respectively, do not qualify.
• Because the credit covers only tuition, fees and books, students who have scholarships or grants that cover these are ineligible.
• Students with any drug felony convictions are not eligible either.

In the end, the tax credit is useful to a wide variety of taxpayers who are seeking small ways of finding debt relief. They need to follow a few rules to take advantage of the credit. Taxpayers can claim 100 percent of the first $2,000 they spend on tuition, fees or books and 25 percent of the next $2,000 spent. For example, if a parent has a $4,000 expense for tuition, fees or books, they can take $2,500 off of their 2010 taxes. If they owe less than the $2,500, then the government will return 40 percent of “whatever extra credit they qualify for, up to a maximum of $1,000.”

Finding help with college

Parents should utilize every tool they can to help defray the costs of college. It’s standard practice that tuition, fees and books increase every year as colleges and universities try to manage their own debt in a difficult economy.

With potentially an additional $2,500 in tax credited money, consumers can find some debt relief to help with their budgets. It may take a professional to sort through the complete tax code, but in the end it is worth the added trouble.

Image from Flickr.

For a television show to stick around for 40 years, it’s got to be doing something right. Today marks the 40th anniversary of “Sesame Street,” which means Big Bird’s 40th birthday as well.

While many people would probably be aware of this without Google’s commemorative display today, thanks to the world’s most popular search engine, everyone knows.

‘Sesame Street’ anniversary celebrations

Besides starting its 40th season on PBS Nov. 10, the “Sesame Street” anniversary and Big Bird’s birthday will be commemorated with some late-night appearances and new merchandise. “Sesame Street” had to rely on donations to PBS just like every other show in the beginning, but I’m sure it makes most of its money now from merchandise such as lunch boxes and toys.

Tonight, Big Bird will appear on “Jimmy Kimmel Live.” While the former star of “The Man Show” and every kid’s favorite giant bird seem an unlikely pair, Kimmel and his audience were kids once, too, and no doubt have fond memories of Big Bird. In fact, Jimmy Kimmel was only 2 when Big Bird was born. On Monday, Elmo and Rosita will be on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.”

‘Sesame Street’ anniversary video contest

If you don’t want to stay up past midnight to celebrate the “Sesame Street” anniversary, you can head to the “Sesame Street” web site. Smartly targeting the demographic that uses the Internet most, Grover invites you to vote for your favorite “Sesame Street” video from the ’80s.

In the “Sesame Street” 40th anniversary collection section, you can purchase a Big Bird on Google T-shirt. There are also DVDs, cookbooks and a corduroy version of Elmo available.

‘Sesame Street’ today

I think there’s no argument that “Sesame Street” is the longest-running show ever. Having a cast made up of puppets has allowed the show to keep some of the same characters throughout its four-decade run. In fact, if you visit the “Sesame Street” web site today, Bert and Ernie will perform a cheeky little sketch to inform you that today is Sing a Song Day.

So sing a song, vote for a video and buy a T-shirt to ensure that there will be many more Big Bird birthdays and “Sesame Street” anniversaries to come. Think of the children!

Williams College in Massachusetts is facing financial aid cutbacks. More students will resort to personal loans as a result. (Photo: flickr.com)

More students are using personal loans to fund their college costs due to changes in financial aid policies. Along with the rest of the world, colleges and universities are feeling the financial strain of the recessionary economy. They are cutting spending, putting off new projects and programs and instituting hiring freezes. Some experts are speculating that schools soon will be forced to make more cutbacks in the financial aid programs.

Morton Schapiro, president of Massachusetts’ Williams College, is in just that position. Williams College has had a long-standing reputation for not considering a student’s financial situation when deciding on their acceptance. Called a “need-blind” policy, this is a way for students of varying income levels to get accepted to the school of their choice without having to worry about financing. Shapiro agreed that this policy may not be able to withstand the recession. “The major dial you turn for most financial crises is that you admit more students who can pay, as a way of increasing revenues…with the tremendous decline in wealth, I think fewer people will hold to the need-blind [policy].”

Even Worse News

Molly Corbett Broad, president of the American Council of Education, stated that endowments are getting smaller while enrollments are getting larger. “The farther down the food chain you go in terms of endowment per student,” she stated, “the harder it will be to sustain need-blind admissions.”

This change in policy could affect all universities and colleges on some level. Douglas Bennett of Indiana’s Earlham College, is one of the strong proponents of college admission reform. At Earlham College, almost 20 percent of the students are from low-income families and receive some form of financial aid. Bennett stated, “If you are truly need-blind, you can go broke…It is like writing a blank check to the world.”

Endowments

As of now only schools with large endowments are impervious to the recession, but even they are experiencing declines in funding. As Bennett added, “Nobody thinks the market will turn around and go back to do what it did before. That means everyone is having to plan for a more difficult and turbulent financial environment to bring our expenses in line with resources.” Students are bracing for the after effect of the economy by looking at second jobs, personal loans and family aid. They know that the scholarships and financial aid that once was available is no longer there.

The Goal of Educational Institutions

Regardless of the economy, the goal of colleges and universities is to make the degree accessible to as many students as possible. Many are looking at their projected budgets and project management scheduling as a sure-fire place to cut back. Stanford University is cutting five percent straight across the board in every department and cutting $45 million from its operating budget. The school is planning on issuing moderate yearly raises to staff in an effort to remain “committed to its financial aid” plan. Ms. Lapin, Stanford spokeswoman, added, “Maintaining access to Stanford for top students, regardless of costs, remains a top priority.”

Students of the Future

Students of the future face some hefty financing problems to fund their college years. Hopefully, with the help of personal loans, family assistance and part-time jobs, they will be able to complete their degrees. If colleges and universities are equally committed to making school affordable, sticking staunchly to their financial aid plans, students will be able to reach their goal of a higher education.

Credit counseling and a debt management plan can lead to greater peace of mind for consumers in a bind, but proper education is needed first. (Photo: picasaweb.google.com)

When a consumer enters into credit counseling, a common element of any program is what’s called the debt management plan (or DMP). In a DMP, the consumer agrees to make a set monthly payment to their credit counseling agency. Those funds are in turn used by the credit counseling agency to repay the debtor’s bills, loans and other debts according to a schedule made with the creditors. The presence of the credit counseling agency in the transaction may persuade the creditors to be amenable to lowering interest rates or waiving fees, not to mention staunching the flow of credit collection calls the consumer had been receiving. Provided that something more than free counseling but less than bankruptcy filing is needed, a DMP can be a useful tool in protecting a consumer’s financial interests and helping them to move forward and repair credit.

Benefitting the Consumer

A 2008 study entitled “Completing Debt Management Plans in Credit Counseling: An Application of the Theory of Planned Behavior” by Jing Jian Xiao of the University of Rhode Island and Jiayun Wu of the University of Arizona tenders that the most ideal arrangement for a DMP would be one in which consumers were fully informed of their options and chose the most appropriate course of financial action. At the same time, creditors and credit counseling services alike would deal with the consumer in an ethical, professional manner.

While circumstances surrounding a consumer’s financial troubles rarely fall into place like clockwork, numerous recent studies have shown that consumers who participate in DMPs show ” a significantly lower incidence of bankruptcy over the two years following counseling” (Staten & Barron from 2006). Overall, consumer financial well-being has been observed to improve.

Xiao and Wu Study the Link between Attitude and Behavior

In other words, they apply the theory of planned behavior. Consumers’ attitudes toward credit counseling (and the DMP in particular) are important, as the theory hypothesizes that these attitudes will accurately predict future credit behavior. Xiao and Wu study survey and plan completion information from DMP-enrolled consumers in order to go where studies in the field have never been before. While previous studies have attempted to shed some light on the desires and behaviors of consumers who participate in credit counseling, they relied almost solely upon survey data. Xiao and Wu’s use of the theory of planned behavior to identify factors associated with completing the debt management plan is entirely new in the field, according to the study authors.

Positive Attitude, Intention and Results

The authors begin with the survey data from clients of a national credit counseling agency, and then they apply the theory of planned behavior and other methods from literature on the concept of consumer satisfaction. Their goal is to find the link between a consumer’s intent and their actual behavior when completing their DMP. Their discovery is that observed behaviors consistent with the theory of planned behavior had positive effect on consumer’s intentions, post-credit counseling.

Their Findings Have Implications for Credit Counseling Services

DMPs are understandably a significant monetary resource for credit counseling agencies. Predicting how likely consumers are to complete their DMP would hence be useful to the financial stability of such companies. Positive attitude toward completing a DMP plays a very important rule in a consumer’s future intent. It’s much more significant to ask someone “What do you think about completing the debt management plan?” versus “What do you think about the debt management plan?” Thus, the way in which credit counseling agencies approach the matter with their clients can definitely steer them toward more likely completion, which in turn could foster positive attitudes that reflect in how such credit counseling agencies are perceived by consumers.

Help Clients Feel They’re in Control of Debt Management

By providing clients with the necessary information to make informed decisions and periodically updating their progress, credit counseling services can help empower consumers. If said consumers feel as if they’re in greater control of their debt via a well-executed DMP, their instance of intent to complete the DMP is found by the authors to be higher. Greater client satisfaction is central to credit counseling success, which would indicate that if the agencies consistently treated clients with respect, there would tend to be positive result. Meeting consumer need and even exceeding expectations – a good recipe for any business transaction – leads to a greater likelihood of DMP completion. This is beneficial to all parties involved, from the client to the credit counseling agency to creditors.

What Can Educators Take From Xiao and Wu’s Study?

Determining a credit counseling client’s behavioral intention comes down to two factors, say the authors: “Attitude toward the behavior and perceived behavioral control.” When developing programs to promote positive behavior development, educators should consider directing subject attention to attitude toward the desired behavior as well as the method used to promote behavior (in this case, the DMP). Clear benefits and consequences of DMP completion should thus be made available to credit counseling clients. If such information is made available as a part of a financial education curriculum, the authors feel that consumers could possibly have a more favorable attitude toward DMPs should they ever have the need. Possible psychological barriers could be lessened.

Knowledge: the Key to Positive Attitude and Intent

Xiao and Wu findings suggest that if a consumer in credit counseling finds a DMP that best suits their needs, satisfaction levels can be significantly high. Education as to what the programs entail is most important. In order for consumers to have the optimal attitudes toward DMP usage, they also need to be aware of other options available within the credit counseling industry. Knowledge leads to well-informed choices and greater satisfaction, per the authors’ findings. It should be noted that another important part of a consumer’s financial education should include how to avoid marketing scams, as some segments of society view credit counseling and debt management plans with negative or exploitative. There are many reputable credit counseling agencies that would benefit from heightened consumer awareness.

Image from Picasa.

Apparently, it has been discovered that the Baby Einstein video series, created for children younger than two, does not turn babies into geniuses. In fact, the Times Online reports that watching videos of any type might be harmful for children that age.

After a drawn out process that involved dropping a complaint against the company in 2007 and then re-opening it, the Baby Einstein recall has been issued officially. The company says it will refund all Baby Einstein video purchases between June 5, 2004, and Sept. 4, 2009.

Baby Einstein recall a curious case

The time period that the Baby Einstein recall covers includes an incident during which President Bush recognized Baby Einstein company founder Julie Aigner-Clark as an “American hero.” At the time, the Federal Trade Commission was already investigating a complaint against Baby Einstein.

Aigner-Clark had already made some fast cash by selling her company to Disney, but the complaint includes Aigner-Clark because her image is still used to market Baby Einstein, and she is the one who named the company. The complaint directly addresses the name, as “Baby Einstein” indicates that the product will make children smart, although it might actually do the opposite.

Is Baby Einstein recall symbolic?

Now that the Baby Einstein recall has been issued, the complainants seem satisfied. A Slate article rightfully points out that the Baby Einstein recall is important, not because people can get back the few dollars they spend on videos, but because it’s the company’s way of admitting that its products are ineffective.

Furthermore, the Baby Einstein recall publicizes the fact that the videos will not turn children into geniuses, and that’s the real purpose of the complaint: to educate people about the fact that watching videos and TV at such a young age can be bad for kids.

Based on this inromation, it seems logical that the Baby Einstein recall would apply to all purchases of Baby Einstein videos since the company started selling the products in 1997. However, refunds only will be issued for purchases made during the designated time period.

What happens when shopping is a compulsion instead of a hobby? Image from www.designmom.com.

Many people who love spending time at the mall and filling their closets with the latest fashions call themselves “shopaholics.” Usually it’s followed by a laugh or a joke, but this habit can sometimes take the form of a destructive disorder called oniomania, which is the clinical term for the compulsive desire to buy things.

You might know an oniomaniac — someone who is already in debt, already in some kind of trouble but keeps buying more and more stuff. Sometimes oniomania, from the outside, looks like another disorder: hoarding. People who compulsively buy things end up filling their houses to the brim with stuff to the point you can barely get around the house.

Does America create oniomaniacs

It’s not surprising that oniomania exists, especially in a country that has entire historical period called “the rise of consumerism.” The introduction of credit, including loan lenders, in the U.S. changed consumer behavior radically. I highly doubt oniomaniacs would exist if people had to stop buying things as soon as they ran out of money.

Rather, perhaps oniomania would still exist, but people would not be able to act on their compulsions so much. As you can probably tell, I think oniomania is a disturbing and dangerous disease, but why?

Bad for people, bad for the planet

As anyone who has ever watched the A&E series “Hoarders” knows, oniomania and the conditions it spawns can be very dangerous to people’s health and relationships. For anyone who is not extremely wealthy, oniomania can cause serious debt and an overabundance of stuff to the point that it is dangerous. Debt and money issues are at the root of many relationship problems, and oniomania sometimes is at the root of debt and money issues.

Furthermore, as U.S. consumers buy more and more stuff, companies make more and more stuff. Most of that stuff ends up in a landfill, and someday we’re going to run out of space for garbage. If you think you might be an oniomaniac, seek help for the sake of yourself, your finances, your loved ones and the planet.

(Image from Wikimedia.org)

Morehouse College is an historically black college in Atlanta, Georgia. According to Wikipedia, it is one of four remaining traditional men’s colleges in the United States. Like any other college, it’s a place for learning and future leadership preparation. Ambitious individuals from across the nation have secured personal loans just for a chance to attend Morehouse College. So what’s all the big fuss about Morehouse College today?

The New Dress Code Policy

Morehouse College President Robert Franklin has issued a new dress code regulation and not everyone is finding it to their liking. The new policy bans caps, do-rags and/or hoods in classrooms, the cafeteria, or other indoor venues. Unless medical document is provided, sunglasses or “shades” will not be worn in classrooms or at any type of formal program. No pajamas or bare-footed chaps are allowed anywhere on campus grounds. And yes, not even those shiny glittering “grillz” are allowed anymore on campus regardless of whether they are permanent or detachable. Oh and did I forget to mention no “sagging”? Fellows, I suggest you seek some advice from the infamous Steve Urkel. I’m sure his sense of style will save you from the wrath of the “sagging” punishment.

Not a Typical Dress Code

Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/quinnanya/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

So the whole dress code deal sounds rather fair to me. I mean, we live in a corporate world that requires we walk, talk, and sometimes even act a certain way. I doubt anyone who walks in with saggy clothes and a mouth full of street talk will be able to land a decent job in the corporate world, or even get passed the front doors for that matter. It’s absolutely important that you dress to impress. It’s quite understandable if you asked me. However, there is one rule that is causing a lot of controversy, perhaps enough to leave the school in need of personal loans.

According to the Maroon Tiger, the Morehouse College Student Newspaper, the policy outlines 11 expectations, one of which states that there will be no wearing of clothing associated with women’s garb including dresses, tops, tunics, purses, pumps, and anything else that associates with women’s attire.

Necessary or Overly Extreme?

A lot of students are finding this new dress code policy a pure shame and an embarrassment to the school and their fellow school mates.

“I’d hope that if a kid shows up to his interview with a 1580, great leadership and a real interest in the college, that he wouldn’t be turned away because he likes to wear lipstick on Saturdays,” says one blogger. “I must be missing something,” said Frank Leon Roberts, a well-known contributing writer to various newspapers and magazines. “Is there some kind of growing, critical mass of high-heel wearing, gold-tooth rockin’ boys threatening to take over the campus?”

It’s obvious this new Morehouse College dress code policy is stirring up quite a controversy. Of course, I’m sure there is at least one student who would rather secure personal loans for make-up and accessories than laptops and textbooks. But is the school taking it too far by asking their men to put away their lipsticks and high-heels? Was it necessary or overly extreme? What do you think?

Would it be smart to lease a SmartCar? Image from Flikr.

Many consumers are using personal loans to fund car leasing. But do they really understand the terms?  It’s important to understand what car leasing is, as opposed to purchasing.

Leasing a car is to buying a car what renting an apartment is to owning a property.  For a certain period of time — two, four, even five years — the customer will make payments to use the car, but never own it throughout the leasing period. There can be an option to buy the car at the end of the lease, but this needs to be understood clearly by the potential buyer.

Deciding factors

The length of the lease is very important.  Normally a car lease will last anywhere from 24 to 60 months, and that adds up to a large amount of money. Be sure to calculate out how much money is actually going to go into this vehicle and whether it’s worth it to lease instead of buy.

Also, consumers should know how many miles they are going to put on the car on average.  Companies can offer low-mile leases, standard-mile leases and high-mile leases.  Customers need to be pretty accurate when it comes to estimating how many miles they anticipate using because overages can come with heavy charges.

Normally companies charge anywhere from 7-10¢ per mile over the limit. While this doesn’t sound like much, the charges can add up to significant amounts if the overage is substantial.  For example, a low-mile lease will have a lower payment, but the mileage will be limited.  In the end, if a customer opts for this type of lease but then goes over on mileage, any savings they would have had can quickly be eaten up by the extra mile charges.  Be careful when estimating the amount of mileage used and be sure to include miles to work and back and recreational time driving into the total.

Other laws to be aware of

Any leasing company should give a detailed, written statement that cites the total consumers will be paying.  This document should cover any down payment information, registration fees and security deposits. Customers need to be sure to have a specific total so they can apply for personal loan that covers the complete amount.

Another law is that the leasing office must tell the consumer what insurance requirements are for the vehicle. Again, this amount needs to be factored into the loan amount the customer applies for.  There are also warranties to understand. Consumers need to ask about the warranty and find out exactly what it covers, and what it doesn’t cover.  They need to know who is responsible for servicing the vehicle in different scenarios.

There will also be a wear-and-tear assessment to understand. This is how a consumer knows the acceptable amount of damage the vehicle will be returned with.  Companies know that cars have normal  wear and tear issues, but they need to specify what the stipulations are.  The law states that wear and tear must be “reasonable”, but it’s up to the consumer to understand what the leasing company’s definition of reasonable is.

Car leasing made simple

Car leasing can be a solution for people who opt to not purchase.  If drivers are able to calculate how much they drive and want to change cars frequently, leasing maybe the most viable option.

Consumers have to be aware, though, that estimating the full payments is a detailed process.  If they are using a personal loan to fund the cost, this is particularly important. Leasing a car can be beneficial to drivers if they are detail-oriented and precise with  estimating cost and mileage.

Get your Personal Loans HERE!

Image from Flikr.com.

The September 11 Education Trust — founded in 2001 as the World Trade Center United Family Group — has spend the past eight years developing September 11 Lesson Plans to teach kids about the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.

The group’s web site says “The September 11th Education Trust produces comprehensive, flexible, and engaging 9/11 and civic literacy education programs that are personalized and enriched through first-hand accounts, filmed oral histories, and authentic, primary archival materials to permanently record this shared historic event in a way that is not stagnant, but inspiring and relevant to the nation’s youth.”

Another chapter in the history books

HispanicBusiness.com reports that six states will be adding the September 11 lesson plans to their agenda this year. The curriculum includes video footage and information gleaned from 70 interviews of eyewitnesses, family members of victims and politicians such as former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and current Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as well as Muslim scholars.

The September 11 Education Trust isn’t funded by military personal loans or defense funds. It’s a non-profit organization funded mostly by donations and directed by victims’ families, survivors, rescue workers and educator.You can donate to the cause and read about September 11 lesson plans at the September 11 Education Trust web site.

September 11 lesson plans

The Associated Press reports that the September 11 lesson plans also include interactive elements, including using Google Earth to map terrorist activity. Rudy Guliani said:

“This is one of the critical subjects on which young people should develop some ideas and thoughts; they’re going to have to live with this for quite some time. It gives young people a framework in which to think about Sept. 11, all that it meant and all that it means to the present.”

Professors helped develop the September 11 lesson plans through the Taft Institute for Government at Queens College. “The real trick is to get kids to see that it’s not just a dramatic event like 9/11 that connects them to these issues, it’s connected to their lives in the everyday,” said Michael A. Krasner, a political scientist at Queens College.

The truth, the whole truth

Anthony Gardner, the executive director of the September 11 Education Trust, said the September 11 lesson plans give an open-eyed view of the events that happened that day in 2001.

“We’re not sugarcoating the event. We’ve included some images that are challenging,” Gardner said.

Gardner’s brother died in the World Trade Center because of the attacks.

Taking advantage of technology

September 11 lesson plans are not limited just to traditional classroom teaching methods. There’s a interactive web site built around the curriculum.

Professors and students are encouraged to share their own videos and lesson plans as well as discuss the questions raised in their classrooms.

The National September 11 Memorial & Museum has also developed educational materials for high schools, which are intended to augment classroom discussions, not to serve as an in-depth curriculum, The Associated Press says.

President Obama's school speech is meant to encourage, not indoctrinate. (Photo: flickr.com)

It’s a ridiculous question, of course. Can’t we all appreciate that the president wants our youth to work hard and achieve a bright future for themselves and America as a whole? Because the more well-prepared, motivated young people who enter the adult world, the better this country will be as a whole. From money lenders to structural engineers, a world of jobs will need to be filled. There’s nothing complicated or – dare I say – nefarious about that. Yet that’s exactly what critics are complaining about with the Obama school speech. They need something to gripe about to give themselves purpose, so they claim it’s all part of “the agenda.”

And the Obama administration has bent over backward to please these people. They even released Obama’s school speech text. Is that conclusive enough evidence to dispel the notion that some unspeakable evil is about to be wrought upon our impressionable youth?

The uproar is “silly”

That’s what Secretary of Education Arne Duncan calls the unsupported furor over Obama’s planned address to the schoolchildren of America. White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs has stated that “It’s a sad state of affairs that many in this country politically would rather start an ‘Animal House’ food fight rather than inspire kids to stay in school, to work hard, to engage parents to stay involved.”

According to the New York Times, the Obama school speech is intended to encourage kids to “dream big dreams, respect their teachers, study hard and learn from failure.” We all fall down at times; we do so in order to learn to pick ourselves up again. Nothing could be more serious. This is what we owe ourselves.

President Obama will deliver the school speech at noon Eastern Time from Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia, but it will be broadcast live to schools across the nation. Most of America’s 15,000 school districts plan to show the Obama school speech, and accommodations will be made for the few whose parents object to their children viewing the speech. Why a parent would object to what has been revealed to be an inspirational message is beyond me. If there are other reasons, then I would ask why the child is in a public school system to begin with. It is self-defeating to leave the child in public school if the parents have no intention of allowing that child to assimilate into the general public sphere. I would say that it damage’s the child’s psyche, but I’m a writer and concerned citizen… what’s that worth?

It’s about taking personal responsibility

Guilford County Schools of North Carolina Chief of Staff Nora Carr finds that the Obama school speech planned for the children of America is nothing controversial. On the contrary, it’s something “refreshing,” particularly from a politician. Taking personal responsibility for one’s actions and decisions has been a foreign concept for politicians in America of late, particularly with those who cheat on their wives and spend taxpayer money illegally. Don’t worry, Governor Mark Sanford of South Carolina, I’m not naming any names.

Before the text of the Obama school speech was released by the White House, certain parents in Guilford County School District were angry like a number of those in red state pockets around the Bible belt. There were also those who were upset that school districts were allowing parents the option to opt out. While I do think parents should have such an option, it seems odd to me that they wouldn’t want their children to be involved in building up their country. Narrow-mindedness leads to a lack of intellectual diversity. Choking out ideas with the weeds of narrow fundamentalism teaches children to submit to authority and stifle creativity in deference to the party line. If all of the Republican complainers think that the Obama “agenda” is enslaving children, they ought to look in the mirror first.

This isn’t mandatory, folks

Nor should it be. As I’ve said, parents should indeed have a say in what their children are taught in schools. Not control, but a say. If they want their children out, they should have that right. Some schools are even opting out, which I suppose is also their right, although again, I don’t see why they would unless it’s true that they’re actually too busy. School has just begun around the country, so this is understandable.

Speech is OK; now let’s attach the Obama school speech lesson plan!

Work hard at your education, students. (Photo: flickr.com)

The Obama school speech lesson plan has also been controversial. The same people who initially opposed any sort of speech from Obama to America’s schoolchildren had gripes over the lesson plan the White House provided as supplementary material in case teachers wanted it. In particular, discussion points like “Write letters about what they (students) can do to help the president” were interpreted as some sort of mandatory service call, which is ludicrous. What’s wrong with helping the president if children choose to do so? Such a question does not exist in a vacuum; it is part of much larger discussion, one that includes not only teachers, but parents and caregivers as well. Talking about what kids can do is not a call for mandatory service, but a chance for them to use their imaginations and decide how they might go on to interact with their world in a positive way. Hiding from the world – whether it be due to political or religious fundamentalist views – does not provide a real growth environment. Children must have guidance, but they must also be allowed to interact with the world around them.

But the squeaky wheel got the grease and the question on the optional supplemental lesson plan was changed. Yes, it’s an OPTIONAL supplemental plan. Please find something productive to do with your lives, objectors. Now it reads: “Write (a letter to yourself) about how (you) can achieve short‐term and long‐term education goals.” Sure, it does make the meaning more clear for those who can only see in black and white… I suppose catering to the lowest common denominator in America isn’t a completely foreign concept.

The president struggled to get to where he is now

And it’s that kind of message Mr. Obama wants to get across to children: the road will be hard. There will be bumps. But if you commit to hard work, it will eventually pay off. Whether junior becomes a lion tamer or a money lender, hard work and a commitment to being the best they can be in their chosen field is what will lead to their own success. A society made up of such motivated individuals will not be predisposed to fail. Education is the key toward a better America.

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Yep, it's worked that way for me, too. (Photo: flickr.com)

You’ve seen the disclaimer before about using cash advance loans responsibly. But what does that really mean? Sure, you’d be foolish to plan a trip to Las Vegas and go to the tables strictly with cash advance money. There is no guaranteed rate of return and the house always comes out ahead in the end. It would also not be advisable to use a cash advance to help train yourself for an ice cream-eating contest. Your waistline will already be paying for that little escapade with interest, so why would you want to also pay interest on the money used to purchase your ice cream and ice cream paraphernalia?

In general terms: a cash advance is there to help you during a small-scale financial emergency. It’s easy to sit back and want something, and it’s also easy to apply for a cash advance to scratch that itch. However, that doesn’t mean you should do it. A cash advance is a responsible way to deal with a difficult situation when your options are limited.

Struggling with temptation

It all sounds well and good, doesn’t it? You know as well as I do that temptation can strike at any time. Splurging once in a while is fine, but actually using short-term loan products like a cash advance to artificially inflate your budget is asking for trouble. I haven’t been in that exact situation, but I do remember a couple of instances where the strong impulse to buy overrode higher brain function.

Let’s go back to when I was a child. My father owned a trucking company, and as a result of that he was not around as much as I would have liked him to be. He knew this, and he felt guilty about it. He attempted to compensate by buying me things, particularly comic books. However one day I was out with my dad on the weekend running errands and we stopped at the local gas station convenience store. It had been a long day and we were both tired. My father and I went into the store so that we could buy drinks. I was hoping for my favorite slushy, cola flavored. Little did I know that that little convenience store would become one of the battlegrounds of my childhood. Next to register was a rack filled with cheap toys, the kind you find in convenience stores, grocery store toy aisles and in the back of drugstores. I spied a small puppet — it was a Raggedy Ann puppet as I recall — with no moving parts and a very cheap presentation this way of the dingiest Taiwanese toy factory/sweatshop. I had heard mom say that we needed to save money, but I would have none of that. I didn’t have a toy on hand to amuse myself for the rest of the car ride, so I insisted that daddy buy me the piece of junk puppet.

The line was drawn, and I wouldn’t give an inch

It was on this occasion that my father decided he would play at taking a stand. He would attempt to teach me a lesson about money by using all of the reasonable arguments, such as that the puppet was very cheap, it would break easily and I didn’t have to have a new toy every time I went outside. I wasn’t a baby when this happened, so logically I could understand all of the things he was saying. I wasn’t unintelligent, but the infantile mind I had when it came to valuing money took hold. I began to whine and drone on in my usual way about how I really wanted it, and I think I embarrassed my father in front of one of his friends, the shop owner. Rather than get angry, however, my dad caved like he usually did. By the time we got home that evening, my funny little puppet was already broken and forgotten. I could scream for money, but I didn’t appreciate it once I got it. I wanted a cash advance, but I had no true inkling of what it took to provide that money. I still feel guilt over what I put my parents through to this day, and I’m a grown man now. Cash advance for counseling… now that’s a more responsible way to use a short-term loan.

Sharing lessons learned with my young cousin

Skip ahead 12 years. I’m a young man on a family outing to the zoo. We had a great time calling to the hyenas, watching the alligators consume their daily meal and ducking as the gorillas flung their fecal matter across the enclosure. It was our family tradition that at the end of the visit, we would stop in the gift shop near the exit to the park. I am sure this tradition probably began with me wanting a toy, but I was no longer a little boy. Today, the little boy was my cousin Ryan. He was (and still is) a sweet kid with a very intuitive sense of how others are feeling, but on this day he was somewhat less than sweet. As he paced furiously up and down the aisles of the zoo gift shop, Ryan’s expression grew increasingly upset. He had his little coin purse in hand, and he was looking for a souvenir that he could afford. As it stood, all that was within his limited budget were some rather cheap toys (more plastic bits of stuff from Taiwan) that he didn’t even seem to be very excited about.

Yet some kind of compulsion was at work here. Ryan had to buy something, and the fact that there wasn’t anything that he truly wanted was unimportant. I recognized what was going on because I’d been there myself when I was a child masquerading as a consumer gremlin. Buying simply for the sake of buying was ultimately not fulfilling, and I wanted to teach Ryan some of that lesson. I wanted him to understand that it was okay to save his money for something he really wanted; spending for the sake of spending would put him in a position where he’d have junk instead of something he really wanted, like a new skateboard. A cash advance for the purpose of slating greed was no reason for him to break his bank.

Apply for a responsible cash advance here

I wasn’t able to convince Ryan to save his money, which I suppose is not surprising. Those kinds of lessons have to come at an early age, ideally from one’s parents. My parents didn’t do that for me. They were good parents on other fronts, but when it came to money, they weren’t much help. Ryan’s upbringing was probably similar.

So when you think about whether or not to take out a cash advance for your short-term financial issue, consider whether you are merely responding to a gut level decree, or whether you’re facing a problem that needs closure. Taking out a cash advance to solve a real problem is the more responsible way to go. Click the button above to apply here. I just hope you’ll use it responsibly.

Image from media.npr.org.

When I first heard that “Reading Rainbow” would stop airing today, my first thought was “That show is still on the air?” My second thought was that, given that it is, or was, still on the air, I can’t remember a time before “Reading Rainbow.”

Turns out, that’s because the show started airing the year after I was born. Perhaps if LeVar Burton had continued to produce “Reading Rainbow” until I had children I’d rediscover the inspirational show that taught children to love reading. But, alas, future children will have to develop fond memories of different shows.

Award-winning ‘Reading Rainbow’

“Reading Rainbow” got plenty of appreciation. It won 26 Emmy Awards, the same number of years it was on the air. But PBS has run out of guaranteed loans, so “Reading Rainbow” will be no more.

After 26 years, “Reading Rainbow” was the third-longest-running children’s television show, after “Sesame Street” and “Mister Rogers.” Can you imagine “Sesame Street” being canceled? It’s a crazy thought.

Comments from the peanut gallery

Here are a few quotations floating around in the blogosphere about “Reading Rainbow.”

From the Zeray Gazette: Linda Simensky, vice president for children’s programming at PBS, says that when Reading Rainbow was developed in the early 1980s, it was an era when the question was: “How do we get kids to read books?” Since then, she explains, research has shown that teaching the mechanics of reading should be the network’s priority.

From Read Street: After 26 years, LeVar Burton’s no longer going to dress up like a Medieval knight, introduce elementary schoolers to sushi or give kids their first 15 seconds of fame proclaiming their love of books.

From NPR: “The series resonates with so many people,” says John Grant, who is in charge of content at WNED Buffalo, Reading Rainbow’s home station. The show’s run is ending, Grant explains, because no one — not the station, not PBS, not the Corporation for Public Broadcasting — will put up the several hundred thousand dollars needed to renew the show’s broadcast rights.

More about LeVar Burton

One very vivid “Reading “Rainbow” related memory I have is the first time I watched “Star Trek” with my dad. I think was about 7. The instant Geordi La Forge’s face appeared on screen, gold visor and all, I instantly shouted “That’s the guy from Reading Rainbow!”

LeVar Burton began hosting and producing “Reading Rainbow” in 1983, when he was 26 years old. His official stint on “Star Trek” lasted from 1987-1994, but he appeared in movies and a few scattered episodes after that. So he was a busy man then, but nowadays he mostly does voice work, bit parts and “Reading Rainbow.”

LeVar Burton, 52, was born in Germany because his father, a photographer for the U.S. Army, was stationed there. He grew up in California. I wonder what he will do now? If you want to keep up with LeVar Burton, follow him on Twitter.

“Reading Rainbow” song video

Oh, come on, you didn’t really think I’d leaving you hanging, did you?

Access a university education from home with Academic Earth (Photo: flickr.com)

The more you know, the more socially, intellectually and (in some cases) physically able you become. Being a well-rounded citizen, friend and self-sustaining individual are all ends that can be achieved in large part through education. Unfortunately, many give up on the idea that they have to continue to learn throughout their lives if they want to challenge themselves, grow and live vibrant lives. Too many accept the black and white the world gives, topping it off on rare occasion with a splotch of gray. This is a tragedy, in that the world is filled with veins of colorful experience. Knowledge of how to live – rather than merely subsist – is essential for people of all ages. If the brain isn’t stimulated, the chance of senior onset dementia in later life is increased.

Use your mind while you’ve got it

Some people make good in college and truly expand their mental horizons. Others turn away from that kind of life and choose a trade, an average job or simply to drop out. Still more would love to be exposed to a university education, but lack the funds or the time to actually attend college. Sure, cheap loans or cheap payday loans can help with a little money once in a while, but not enough to bankroll a college education.

Yet there is hope. The popularity of distance learning has exploded across the World Wide Web, resulting in the availability of high-level university lectures covering a wide variety of topics. Two of the best aggregators of this video content are Academic Earth and OpenCulture.com. At no cost to you and on your own time via online video, you can view complete lectures from MIT, Harvard, Yale, Berkley and Princeton, among other esteemed universities. It’s all organized by topic and is easy to search, too.

“Hulu for nerds”

Farhad Manjoo writes for Slate that for anyone who has free time, there’s no excuse to stop learning. He recounts how he was able to hop from one lecture to the next, learning about everything from the origins of the current recession to long-term investing and more. Most of the lectures were very engaging, and for those that weren’t, leaving was as easy as a mouse click. Hop from the lecture halls of one university to the next without the travel costs… in no time at all! Academic Earth, while not an organization that can provide you with college credit, can give you nearly all the same material you’d receive in a traditional college classroom. They give you education when you want it. You can even subscribe in podcast fashion. As Manjoo describes it, “it’s like Hulu, but for nerds.”

And being a nerd is a good thing

Lead a busy life? Academic Earth is available when you need it! (Photo: flickr.com)

Academic Earth picks and chooses the best of the best, and its organization scheme couldn’t be easier to navigate. Google tried to achieve something similar with Knol, but the results were less user-friendly. In both cases, however, you are learning from acknowledged experts in their fields, as opposed to anonymous commentators that tend to color what appears on Wikipedia. Academic Earth, in Majoo’s estimation, bests Knol in that it presents material in the complete context of a course, whereas Knol is comprised solely of articles experts want to contribute at the time.

Academic Earth’s videos are generally of high quality, and make both the professor’s notes and spoken words quite clear. Discussion with students is sometimes included as well, but as the students aren’t speaking directly into microphones, the sound quality of their questions varies. Lecture notes, transcripts, handouts and homework are even available, but as this is all made available at the online student’s leisure, there is no grading pressure. How you use the material is up to you.

No grades?

Well, that isn’t entirely true. Viewers can grade the lectures to help clue the Academic Earth student community at large in to which lecturers pack that extra something that makes learning more fun. The base grade on a given lecture is “B,” but that can change based upon user reviews.

Where’s the profit?

Richard Ludlow, Academic Earth’s founder, ultimately envisions his site as an agent for change. He told BusinessWeek that he hopes it will help lower the cost of education worldwide. But that can’t be done for free, or with just a few cheap loans or with cheap payday loans. While users can view videos for free, Academic Earth is a for-profit company. Thus, Ludlow’s initial plan is to add supplementary content that falls outside the Creative Commons. He will sell advertising on these.

Your college experience may vary

Studies have shown that distance learning can be highly effective, so the future of sites like Academic Earth is bright. Currently they do not replace a college diploma (as they are not an accredited academic institution), but who knows what the future will hold? I don’t believe online only education can ever fully replace the traditional college experience (some would argue the social element alone is worth the price of admission), but a more intense integration of online and on-site learning seems possible.

However, there are plenty of people out there who simply want to learn and are not worried about whether they’ll receive college credit or grab the reins of that “college experience.” No essays, finals, or boring discussions are to be found on Academic Earth. The bad ones generally don’t make it onto the site, and the lukewarm tend to be voted into oblivion by the user base. Plug in and spend an afternoon expanding your mind. Tune into one of Academic Earth’s playlists, even. But this isn’t merely an iTunes list of rock anthems or slow jams… it’s the tune a happy brain plays when it’s filled with interesting food for thought.

Related Video:

Like a weight lifted from your shoulders (Photo: flickr.com)

Is a short-term financial problem weighing you down? If there were an exciting solution, would you want to discover it?

Of course. And wouldn’t you want to know where to look for that solution?

What if you could obtain installment loans while suffering from bad credit or bankruptcies? What if you could do it today, right away?

If quick cash that typically avoids time-consuming credit checks is your goal, you may want to continue reading.

Here’s a scenario

Imagine your monthly income gives you the boost you need to escape the paycheck to paycheck trap. Or to turn it around, perhaps you tighten the budgetary belt once in a while because you have periodic car repair to factor in or a larger than normal bill you know is heading your way. Another situation might entail you stockpiling money out of each paycheck for a while to brace you for holiday shopping or back-to-school deals for the kids.

What would you do in this situation?

It’s almost time for the kids to go back to school after a long, happy summer. Once you’ve purchased everything you think they’ll need for school, your bank account is crying uncle. By the time the wardrobes are updated, lunches are packed and they’re on that big yellow bus, your balance is close to running on empty. You’ll make it through, you think. But what if their teacher sends them home with a list of all new things they’ll need for class projects? If payday’s not for another week and paying for it all would send your account dangerously low, an installment loan can be a financial life-saver.

What you get with an installment loan

The installment loan is intended to help people just like you avoid the surprise financial sinkholes that can bury your budget. If you’re looking for anywhere from $100 to $1,500, enough for a problem situation, but not enough to finance a car, home or college education, a payday loan is for you. Apply now and you may receive that little bit of cash you need to tide you over between paydays. This comes without the waiting, hassle and/or negative consequences associated with applying for money from other sources. It is also much preferable to skipping utility or credit card payments.

Please use installment loans as they are intended

If you do this, this short-term consumer credit loan can put your mind at ease and send the over-inflated bill blues packing. Always try to borrow what you can afford to repay, since a payday loan is not free money. The aid of an installment, when fit into the framework of a solid long-term budget plan, can be advantageous. Again, remember that they are short-term products. If you need more long-term assistance, seek the advice of a financial planner or credit counselor.

Installment loans may be the solution to your short-term cash flow issues. Apply now by clicking the green button. A cash infusion may raise your checkbook’s spirits. If more knowledge is what you seek, stick around, because Personal Money Store is your source for consumer finance news, notes and forays into the unexpected.

Harvard

Choosing a college is an important, expensive decision. Several publications every year come out with college rankings, and U.S. News and World Report has named the best colleges to attend in 2010.

Just as you want to get the best auto financing you possibly can, you must pick a college that gives you the best education you can afford. U.S. News and World Report college rankings conveniently include a “best values” category. Here are the top three schools listed under Best Values in the U.S. News and World Report college rankings for 2010.

Harvard University

U.S. News and World Report college rankings say that Harvard University is number one when it comes to value. This was confusing to me because Harvard is one of the most expensive schools in the country, but it turns out that 57 percent of the students attending Harvard get needs-based grants, and the average discount from total cost is 73 percent.

So, basically, if you can meet Harvard standards well enough to get accepted, the school will help you afford it. I guess that explains why it is number one in value on the U.S. News and World Report college rankings.

Yale University

For similar reasons, Yale came in second place on the best values list on U.S. News and World Report college rankings. Here’s an explanation of the methodology from the U.S. News web site:

Ratio of quality to price: A school’s overall score in the America’s Best Colleges 2010 rankings was divided by the 2008-2009 academic year net cost to a student receiving the average need-based scholarship or grant. The higher the ratio of a school’s America’s Best Colleges 2010 edition rank to the discounted total cost less the average 2008-2009 academic year need-based scholarship or grant, the better the value. Total cost equals the sum of 2008-2009 academic year tuition, room and board, fees, books, and other expenses, including transportation.

Other parts of the Best Value equation include how many students get need-based scholarships and average discounts.

Princeton University

Third on the list of best values among national universities is Princeton University. At this point, one must consider the fact that even receiving a hefty discount on the cost of attending Harvard, Yale or Princeton leaved one with an expensive bill.

I have read several studies that talk about salaries after college compared to the cost of a specific university, and I definitely recommend going to a state school and paying residential tuition instead of paying the cost of going to a private university. But who am I to argue with U.S. News and World Report college rankings for 2010? If you check out rankings.usnews.com/best-colleges/, you can also view college rankings base on highest acceptance rate, highest graduation rate and students older than 25.

There also are categories for economic diversity, eithnic diversity, freshman retention and most and least debt.

He wants to teach your kids about money. You should listen, too. (Photo: DIC Entertainment)

What have we learned about the way people handle money lately? Loose and lazy seems to be the general rule in America, in that people don’t tend to plan as much for the future as they should and operate on instant gratification. Lack of impulse control is common. Yet the current recession has been a deep, dark, truthful mirror of sorts, not only for ourselves but for our government. Just as we must manage our money well and make informed decisions, the government needs to do the same and stop shoveling problems under the rug. Hopefully, the Obama administration will start breaking some of the old ways.

But what about us?

Payday loans and unsecured loans offer short-term help, but what should we do over the long haul? We should look to any sources we can find to teach ourselves and our children about finance. First and foremost, it should be part of the core educational curriculum from a very early stage in schools.

However, there are other tools. For instance, Warren Buffett, the mastermind investor of Berkshire-Hathaway, has agreed to lend his voice to a new animated series called “The Secret Millionaire’s Club.” The idea behind this is to “get children to grasp basic finance lessons well before they do things like, say, agree to a risky, adjustable rate mortgage,” reports The Huffington Post.

Here’s Buffett’s idea

If we can get through to some young people, say it’s better to be ahead of the game than behind, watch out for credit cards, most important message is the best investment you can make is in yourself. Teach them if something is too good to be true it probably is. So if they learn those things the easy way through these stories early on it may save them learning the hard way later on.

He’s definitely enthusiastic about “The Secret Millionaire’s Club.” Here’s a recent CNBC interview:

Stock market looking up

Definitely animated (Photo: Poolparty.com)

People need to know about these kinds of things. People want to know what’s going on with the stock market. Specifically, whether or not they should start investing again. On that matter, Warren Buffett has had good things to say. Now that the Dow has hit 9,000 for the first time since January, he’s weighing in: “I would much rather own equities at 9,000 on the DOW than have a long investment in government bonds or a continuously rolling investment in short term money now. Again, I don’t know where it’s going to go next week or next month.”

So according to Buffett, investors should invest now. Business may still be flat, but as Buffett puts it, “If you wait until you see the robin, spring will already be over.”

Short term money?

Payday loans and unsecured loans are short term money. If your budget has a real need for that kind of boost, you can apply right here, right now. And be sure to check out “The Secret Millionaire’s Club” when it hits a computer or television near you.

Related Video:

It should come as no surprise that graduates from Dartmouth and MIT end up in very high-paying careers. However, some people are surprised that fourth on the pay-scale list, right after Harvard, is a liberal arts university called Harvey Mudd College.

The New York Times reports that the mid-career median salary for Harvey Mudd College is about $124,000, right in the same range as MIT and Harvard. Dartmouth tops the list with a median mid-career salary of $130,000. That’s enough to allow you to pay back the personal loans that paid for your tuition in just a couple of years.

Why the surprise?

People are not the least bit surprised that MIT graduates make big money because it’s common knowledge that jobs in technology are among the highest paying in the country. But Harvey Mudd College is just another liberal arts school in California, right? Though it does label itself a liberal arts university, the Harvey Mudd College web site says:

We’re one of the premier math, science and engineering colleges in the nation. We’re also unique because we are a liberal arts college. Aren’t math, science and engineering mutually exclusive of the liberal arts? Maybe at some places, but not at HMC.

What do you mean, liberal arts?

So, if Harvey Mudd College is a math, science and engineering college, what makes it a liberal arts school? The web site says:

We educate engineers, scientists and mathematicians who become leaders in their fields and have a clear understanding of the impact their work has on society. That’s the big picture.

Now here’s how we make it work. Mudd offers nine math, science, and engineering-based majors, all grounded in a solid core curriculum that includes a healthy dose of humanities and social science courses. Why? Because we know that you don’t have to sacrifice your interest in music or art (or anything else) to be good scientists. And because an understanding of history and politics will make us more effective engineers, chemists, lawyers, doctors and human beings.

More effective human beings, eh? That certainly sounds like a liberal arts college to me. Sounds like Harvey Mudd College has a good formula figured out.

Not just in it for the money

Though Harvey Mudd College is not an Ivy League school, it does cost roughly the same, about $40,000 per year for tuition and fees. So if all you want is to maximize your earning potential, you might as well go to Dartmouth.

However, if you want to stay in the west but make as much money as an Ivy Leaguer after college, Harvey Mudd College is your best choice, as far as earning potential goes. A very close second on the list for West Coast schools is Stanford, whose graduates’ median mid-career salary about $122,000.

The College Cost Reduction and Access Act went into effect in 2007, but some of the provisions are still kicking in. Specifically, The Income-Based Repayment Plan kicks in on July 1.

The part of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, which is already in effect, is the The Public Service Loan Forgiveness Plan.

Income-Based Repayment Plan

First off, the College Cost Reductions and Access Act only applies to federal loans. If you got student loans from a private loan company, these programs can’t help you, unfortunately.

But every little bit helps, right? The Income-Based Repayment Plan caps payments on federal student loans based on the family size and income. Most eligible borrowers will get their payments capped at only 10 percent of their income. For low-income families, the payments could be even lower.

In the long run

The Income-Based Repayment plan also forgives any remaining debt after the borrower has made payments for 25 years. This is similar to a provision in The Public Service Loan Forgiveness Plan, which forgives any remaining debt after 10 years, starting in October 2007.

The Public Service Loan Forgiveness Plan is designed to help and encourage public service workers. Degrees to work in the public service sector can often be very expensive, and salaries are average or lower than average.

More on Public Service Loan Forgiveness

In order to qualify for The Public Service Loan Forgiveness Plan, borrowers must work in public service full time for 10 years. As long as public service workers are making regular payments and working full time, any debt to the feds will be forgiven after 10 years.

Of course, this provision also applies only to funding obtained through the Federal Direct Student Loan Program or Federal Family Education Loan Program.

How to apply

Did your college diploma come with a hefty student loan bill?

If you find out that you qualify, you can contact your loan provider directly. Equal Justice Works also says it will provide more specific information regarding how to apply for this program after July 1.

Public service workers, sit tight

Because Public Service Loan Forgiveness won’t actually forgive any loans until at least 2017, there isn’t a way to apply for it yet. Equal Justice Works says:

Unfortunately, the Department of Education does not currently have a formal process for “registering” for public service loan forgiveness, or for confirming eligible employment. However, we are putting substantial pressure on the Department to put an eligibility confirmation process in place swiftly so that borrowers can make good financial decisions regarding their student loans. In the meantime, save records that identify your employer and the dates and hours of your employment.

Best of both worlds

If you work in public service, you can still take advantage of the Income-Based Repayment Plan. This will significantly help workers in public service who have low paying jobs.

If a public service worker qualifies of the Income-Based Repayment Plan under the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, their payments will be reduced to at most 10 percent of their income. As long as they make those payments for 10 years while working in public service, they’ll have no more federal debt after that.

College graduates see the affects of the recession and are trying to tackle debt relief early on. Recent graduates know that high-paying jobs are few and competition for them is fierce. They are seeing their parents struggle, as a result of the economy and are trying to set themselves up for financial success as soon as possible.

First steps

The first step for college graduates is to get on a good budget. While high-paying jobs are not a certainty regardless of the type of degree a student has, jobs are available. Using a good job search tool can help find the right position and maximize income. Once a job is secured, graduates know how much they have to work with monthly. Questions need to be answered:

• Are entry-level workers going to get an apartment?
• Are workers going to live with parents until some savings are acquired?
• What tactics are available to save money, i.e. public transportation, coupon usage or getting a roommate?
• What additional expenses are going to be involved in the chosen lifestyle?

These questions will give graduates some knowledge on what their budgets are going to look like. For example, if they spend $850 on rent, but heat and water are included, and a roommate is found, that is going to cut back drastically on expenses. If they can use public transportation to get to and from work, that cuts back on gas usage and wear and tear on a vehicle. It’s these types of small changes in expenses that are going to increase net income.

Debt relief

Most college students are going to have to face student loans once they are employed. Student loans can take a substantial amount out of income. Care should be put into taking the expense into account and if possible, paying it down quicker than scheduled. Paying college loans down will save money in the long run. If payments for student loans are too high, there are debt consolidators who can help to negotiate payments down. The important thing to handle debt relief is to be consistent. Consistent payments over a period of time will pay down debt and increase credit ratings. New workers need to use these tools to their advantage from the beginning of their adult life.

Credit card traps for young people

It’s no secret that young people are being targeted by credit card companies. These companies know that college-aged students are their future client base and they are using aggressive tactics to woo them. Some banks are advertising credit cards at college events such as sporting games, dances and club-meetings. College students who have already opened cards need to be wary of usage as they move into employment. It’s too easy to rely on credit cards to make payments, and then overcharge. Credit card companies are using small infractions of rules to charge customers huge fees and hike interest rates, in an effort to increase their revenues. The newly employed need to be aware of these tactics and use credit sparingly.

The future of entry-level workers

The financial future of entry level workers is in their hands. Wise decisions on how to find debt relief, fund retirement as soon as possible and create savings can mean the difference between moderate and exceptional financial growth.

You probably won’t be surprised to hear that more complaints are lodged against debt collectors than any other kind of business. But the actual number of complaints filed may give you pause: according to the Federal Trade Commission, 78,838 people made formal complaints about debt collectors in 2008.

More and more consumers are falling behind on their bills and turning to online loans and cash advances to help stretch the budget between paydays. Naturally, the collections industry is working harder than ever to collect those unpaid debts.

And debt collectors aren’t just calling and mailing. They’re using technology like social networking sites and cell-phone texting to get people to pay.

Don’t make friends with debt collectors

A recent article on CNNMoney, describes an incident where a foreign debt collection company used a picture of an attractive woman to befriend a debtor on Facebook, the social networking site. Acting as a “faux friend” allows a debt collector to monitor your updates and keep tabs on anything you might mention online about your assets, finances, or purchases.

Read up on debt collection laws

There are strict federal laws about what debt collectors can and cannot do to try to collect debts. They must identify themselves as debt collectors. They cannot harass you or talk about your debt to anyone but you or your attorney. They cannot call before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. They cannot threaten to sue you if they don’t have any intention to do so. They cannot misrepresent the amount you owe.

Find out about statutes of limitation

In every state there are statutes of limitation prescribing time periods after which a creditor can no longer sue you to collect a debt. Applicable limitation periods vary from state to state, but are generally in the range of three to six years. When the limitation period passes, you still owe the debt, but the creditor can no longer sue you to collect it. The only actions that will erase your obligation to pay a debt are cancellation of the debt by the creditor, discharge of the debt in bankruptcy, or payment of the debt.

Get legal advice

Because you still owe the debt, debt collectors don’t have to stop trying to collect just because the time has passed for filing a lawsuit. They can no longer sue you, but short of a lawsuit they can still try to get you pay up. As a practical matter, they debt collectors will stop bothering you once the limitation period passes, but they don’t have to.

If you are being hounded by collectors about old debts, it may be worth getting advice from an attorney who practices in your state. If the limitation periods have passed, telling a collector that you know they can no longer sue may be all it takes to make them go away.

Don’t jump into bankruptcy

Sometimes people file bankruptcy in order to get creditors to stop calling them. But this may be an unnecessary – not to mention expensive and complicated – reaction to pressure from debt collectors.

Before you think about filing bankruptcy, write letters to the debt collectors demanding that they cease contacting you. Send them by certified mail and pay for a return receipt so you know when they are received.

Once your letter is received, a debt collector can no longer contact you except to confirm that they won’t contact you anymore or to advise you that they are taking collection action against you.

Get Legal Advice

It’s usually not difficult to get a debt collector to stop contacting you. But remember: the fact that the collector has stopped contacting you doesn’t necessarily mean you don’t still owe the debt. On the other hand, don’t be shy about demanding that collectors leave you alone. Creditor-and-debtor law is rife with legal defenses and the fact that a collector is hounding you doesn’t necessarily mean that you owe the debt.

If you’re having problems with debt collectors and you have any doubt about whether you owe the debt or how much you owe, don’t just throw money at the collectors to get them to go away. Spend the money instead on good legal advice.