America has become increasingly divided on how best to ease the growing debt burden for many college-educated individuals. President Biden extended the Trump-era emergency pause on student loan debt payments and interest accrual in 2021 and attempted to end that pause by introducing a one-time debt forgiveness plan in 2022, to much criticism from both sides of the political spectrum. 

Some believe debt forgiveness is unfair to those who have already paid their loans and to students who will borrow money in the future and be ineligible for any forgiveness. Others question the legality of federal debt forgiveness and fear potential negative economic impacts of the forgiveness plan, especially as recession fears grow. 

Preventing debt in the first place is likely to be a more substantial and less contentious approach to solving the student loan debt crisis. 

In 2022, the Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation donated $10 million to Salt Lake Community College for the new Gail Miller School of Business and the Larry H. & Gail Miller Business Building, in addition to other donations to higher education institutions across Utah. 

For over 20 years, students at the University of Utah have received the Larry H. and Gail Miller Enrichment Scholarship to further their academic pursuits and help them make significant contributions to the community. For many recipients, the scholarship means an opportunity to be the first in their family to attend college. 

The Miller Enrichment Scholarship typically awards full tuition and fees, on-campus room and board, a textbook allowance and access to mentors. More than 200 students have received an education and resources they may have thought impossible through this scholarship program.

“We have seen through our education scholarship programs the generational impact that can follow,” says Don Stirling, executive director of the Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation. “By increasing access to education, we can change lives, open doors and create the next generation of leaders. Educational opportunities allow more individuals to reach their highest levels of excellence, achieve their dreams and then pay it forward by doing more good in the world.”

The Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation scholarship programs will reach new students at Salt Lake Community College with a scholarship in Gail Miller’s name to celebrate the new Gail Miller School of Business. A $10,000 scholarship will be awarded to a female, first-generation student from West High School—Gail’s alma mater—to attend the Gail Miller School of Business. The scholarship will cover expenses for the two-year program.

“The new business school will emanate Gail’s spirit and essence,” Stirling says. “Students will learn the Gail Miller story and her determined effort to always lift and assist others. They will learn the importance of paying it forward.”

“Paying it forward” may be precisely what we need to help relieve future generations of students from the burdens of student debt and the high costs of education. Federal student loan debt has bloomed in the past few decades, growing to a whopping $1.76 trillion. Though the total amount of student debt in the U.S. is the highest it has ever been, the rate of debt accrual is slowing. The borrowing rate has decreased over the decade, with 2022 seeing the lowest yearly increase in the 21st century. The total balance of federal student loan debt has also dropped a historical .27 percent in 2022’s first quarter, the steepest drop in at least a decade. 

National trends toward better debt management, decreasing borrowing rates and a decreasing national student debt balance may support the argument for forgiveness in the country. Current trends indicate that borrowing will continue to slow down. Over time, the nation’s federal student loan debt will continue to shrink, especially as payments resume sometime in 2023. 

Trends toward decreased debt burdens coupled with increased philanthropic investment in students may pave the way for a brighter future for higher education where students graduate with less debt and more support from industry leaders. 

“Students are essential not only to our current workforce but to the future economic growth of our state,” says the LHM Foundation team. “Our aim remains to increase access to education by helping remove barriers, including financial barriers.”

Preventing debt would encourage Americans to continue receiving higher education. America formerly had the highest number of residents who earned bachelor’s degrees but has since fallen to 12th place globally. College attendance in America has declined by more than 4 percent since the pandemic began and is still decreasing. In 2022, enrollment in undergraduate and graduate programs dropped by 1 percent. Enrollment in community colleges saw more minor losses in 2022, likely due to their affordability. 

The increasing cost of college education in America is a significant factor in the declining college enrollment rate. Even if future forgiveness plans continue to relieve student debt, attracting students to higher education institutions will become more difficult if students aren’t being invested in from the beginning of their education. 

“I often remind students that education is something that you will always have. Nobody can ever take it away from you,” Miller says. “The wonderful thing about education is that you can give it away and still have it. Sharing it magnifies it. It reinforces the ability to strengthen not only you but those you share it with.”