Mr.

Jim Himes
1227 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

November 27, 2017

Dear Representative Himes,

As a Norwalk Community College student, my hope is that making college tuition free will
reduce financial burden, as well as give students the opportunity to reach their full potential,
regardless of their social financial circumstances.
An alarming forty-four million Americans have taken out student loans to pay for college
education, leaving graduates with a debt of $1.4 trillion. In just a decade, the student loan
balance has jumped nearly 150 percent. The average student graduates with an average debt of
thirty-five thousand dollars, which negatively impacts students, their families and our country.
To make matters worse, for-profit colleges now account for over a third of all student loans, even
though these institutions enroll just slightly more than one out of every 10 postsecondary
students. This may be great for colleges like Phoenix, but it is terrible for students.
I believe that Congress has the right and the responsibility to solve the student loan debt crisis.
We need lawmakers to hear our desperation, while examining the impact the student loan debt
crisis has on our economy.
Sincerely,

Fabian G