~Aaron- Memphis, Tennessee
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This is our story… My wife and I are both first generation college grads. Although they were supportive, our families couldn’t help us pay for college. We used student loans for undergrad and also for a year of law school and a masters degree for me.
In 2004, our servicer recommended we consolidate our loans into a single FFEL spousal consolidation. It made sense, so we did it under the rules that existed at that time. If we had known that doing so would mean that we would be forgoing unknown future options for relief, then we certainly would have made a different choice. But we made what we thought was a reasonable and financially sound choice usuing what we knew in 2004.
Approximately 81% of the loans were mine, and about 19% were my wife’s. Rolled into a single new loan with the same interest rate, our principle balance will always be those same percentages until our last payment is made. The idea that they can’t figure out how much of our loan balance should be forgiven is absolute nonsense.
I’ve spent 19 of the last 22 years working in public service, including the last 11.5 years. It is so frustrating that my public service is viewed as less valuable than others’ service. I’m not asking for special treatment. I just want my government to look at my service in the same manner as it does others and not discriminate against me for being married and having used the options available to us in 2004.
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