Student Borrower Advocates

STUDENT LOAN BORROWER ADVOCATES

Advocacy group employees and volunteers are usually not paid by you.  Some gather information and publish reports to help support you during court cases, when it feels like you against the world because of dirty loan servicers.  They work on a macro/cerebral level (above organizing marches, boycotts, and sit-ins).  

In disputes, student loan borrowers need a ferocious advocate for timely relief, rather than a report, because loan servicers (profiteers who police themselves and advise borrowers in a conflict of interest) disregard student loan reports.  Nevertheless, those considering college enrollment can learn more about higher education through these advocacy groups.  And, the Strike Debt/Rolling Jubilee advocacy group listed below does provide pressure, dispute tools, and debt purchases to and for borrowers.  ﻿
Borrowing is a stubborn profit issue that harms the borrower for life.  Lawyers could be ferocious advocates for borrowers (empty pockets), but use their time and energy to pay their loans back, instead.  Borrowers should not let their loan servicers (profiteers) be their only legal advisors.  The list below can get you started on strategizing your student loan debt management.﻿
Student Loan Advocacy News:  We note that as of February 4, 2025, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) mentioned throughout our podcasts has halted "all work after director replaced with Trump administration official", as reported here:  https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/cfpb-halts-all-work-after-director-replaced-with-trump-administration-official/ar-AA1ym9DE?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=HCTS&cvid=91c246ba4d9c42df815e6894b0c571df&ei=20.  This work included student borrower advocacy.  This hollowing out of the protection agency will affect all students’ credit cards and medical debt, as well.  See https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/kids-and-money-watchdog-agency-that-polices-student-loan-market-faces-uncertain-future/ar-AA1yrEjU?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=HCTS&cvid=318f10fa26cd4418cb192123e5d1c933&ei=71.

Organization	Goal	Website	Tactics
American Consumer Credit Counseling	Advice on repayment plans, help with paperwork and budget counseling.	https://www.consumercredit.com/	Vetted by nerdwallet and listed here: https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/loans/student-loans/student-loan-debt-help#:~:text=Search%20for%20a%20counselor%20trained,National%20Foundation%20for%20Credit%20Counseling.&text=You%20could%20also%20pay%20to,and%20outs%20of%20student%20loans.
American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)	Reduce and eliminate veterinarian debt	https://www.avma.org/advocacy/student-debt	“finding solutions to reduce veterinary debt, and advocates on a range of higher education priorities that support veterinary borrowers and help reduce educational debt among veterinary professionals”
Certified Student Loan Professional	A student loan advisory program for financial professionals per the CSLA Institute Board of Standards - The CSLP® Program Student Loan Advisor Course	https://cslainstitute.org/	recommended by nerdwallet and listed here: https://www.nerdwallet.com/
DEMOS	Cancel student debt; democracy and economic justice	demos.org/ See also Demos (U.S. think tank) - Wikipedia
District of Columbia (D.C.) Student Loan Ombudsman at the District of Columbia Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking (state agency) 1050 First Street, NE , Suite 801 Washington, DC 20002 (202) 727-8000	Maintain student loan debt	DISB.DC.gov/page/meet-student-loan-ombudsman opens in new tab	Profiteer; Education Department’s pseudo complaint department; recommended by ED’s loan servicer CRI (another profiteer) here: https://cri.studentaid.gov/content/additionalresources
edtrust	Cancel student debt; create an ideal education system	edtrust.org/	“We evaluate education policies, practices, and dollars spent through a single lens: what’s right for students”
Federal Trade Commission	Warns against paying for advocacy (e.g., obtained refunds for those “who paid Student Advocates and Equitable Acceptance Corporation for student debt relief” after they “falsely promised to help borrowers wipe out their student loan debt or cut their monthly payments”)	https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/refunds/student-advocates-refunds	Refund for student loan relief scams
Massachusetts Student Loan Assistance Unit at the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office (state agency) (888) 830-6277	Maintain student loan debt	Mass.gov/student-loan-assistance opens in new tab	Profiteer; Education Department’s pseudo complaint department; recommended by ED’s loan servicer CRI (another profiteer) here: https://cri.studentaid.gov/content/additionalresources
National Association of Consumer Advocates	Information for student loan borrowers and their own attorney directory for a lawyer near you.	https://www.consumeradvocates.org/	Vetted by nerdwallet and listed here: https://www.nerdwallet.com/
National Association of Social Workers	Getting social workers access to loan forgiveness financial products	https://www.socialworkers.org/Advocacy/Policy-Issues/Student-Loan-Debt-Relief-for-Social-Workers	“NASW is committed to advocating for policy changes that address the critical issue of student loan debt.”
National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA)	Cancel student debt; fix the economy for students	nasfaa.org	“We are regularly engaged in advocacy, public policy and research to support our mission: promoting programs that remove financial barriers and ensure student access to postsecondary education.”
National Consumer Law Center	Comprehensive information on options for student loan borrowers.	https://studentloanborrowerassistance.org/	Some of the best student loan reports to use in court; vetted by nerdwallet and listed here: https://www.nerdwallet.com/
National Education Association (NEA)	Student loan forgiveness	(COOKIES) https://www.nea.org/student-debt-support#:~:text=NEA%20is%20working%20to%20ensure,can%20do%20so%E2%80%94without%20exceptions.
National Foundation for Credit Counseling	Complete financial review for struggling borrowers, which can include advice on student loan options and plans for dealing with other debt (debt management, including stopping collection calls).	https://www.nfcc.org/	They charge fees; vetted by nerdwallet and listed here: https://www.nerdwallet.com/
New Economy Coalition	Cancel student debt; fix the economy	neweconomy.net	“NEC exists to support a just transition from an extractive to a regenerative economy by building the scale and power of the solidarity economy movement in Black, Indigenous, and working class communities in every region of the United States.”
State Higher Education Executive Officers Association	Cancel student debt	sheeo.org	Supporting states to inform higher education public policy
Strike Debt/Rolling Jubilee	Cancel student debt; student debt abolition	rollingjubilee.org	“We are building a movement to abolish debts and win a world where no one has to take on debt to survive.” Tactics: 1 - “Pressuring the state to cancel debts and change policy through strategic organizing campaigns”; 2 - “Providing our members with a suite of debt dispute tools that keep money in their pockets”; 3 - “Purchasing debts in order to erase them in collaboration with the Rolling Jubilee Fund”…“we’ve abolished $31,982,455.76 in existing debt”.
Student Borrower Protection Center	Advocacy on behalf of all borrowers to influence policy; “leading a nationwide effort to end the student debt crisis”	https://protectborrowers.org/	Vetted by nerdwallet and listed here: https://www.nerdwallet.com/
Student Debt Crisis Center	Cancel student debt; free the degree	https://www.studentdebtcrisis.org/	Free virtual workshops and one-on-one appointments for struggling borrowers; share stories (“a community of passionate advocates”); teach about loan program changes; “sharing resources and advocating through social media”; inform the public about their rights; vetted by nerdwallet and listed here: https://www.nerdwallet.com/
Studentloanjustice.Org	Cancel student debt (see mention of founder Collinge's book in our podcast "Is the Department of Education Trustworthy?")	studentloanjustice.org	“We are the first, oldest and largest citizen’s group in the nation fighting for student loan justice…We are the tip of the spear in the citizen's battle for student loan justice”; daily action: informative tweets to retweet (like student loan debt being greater than state budgets in some states—a bubble); break news stories; inform the media.
The Institute for College Access and Success	Cancel student debt	https://ticas.org/our-work/student-debt/	Publishes annual reports on student debt for graduates of public and nonprofit colleges; reviews proposals to streamline income-driven repayment
The Institute of Student Loan Advisors	Advice on repayment plans, forgiveness programs and dispute resolution	https://freestudentloanadvice.org/	Vetted by nerdwallet and listed here: https://www.nerdwallet.com/
U.S. Department of Education FSA Ombudsman Group U.S. Department of Education P.O. Box 1854 Monticello, KY 42633	Maintain student loan debt	studentaid.gov/feedback-center/	Profiteer; Education Department’s pseudo complaint department; recommended by ED’s loan servicer CRI (another profiteer) here: https://cri.studentaid.gov/content/additionalresources
United for a Fair Economy	Cancel student debt; build an inclusive economy	faireconomy.org	Unite people to create change
Virginia Student Loan Advocate at the Office of the Qualified Education Loan Ombudsman in the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (state agency) 101 N. 14th Street, 10th Floor James Monroe Building Richmond, VA 23219 (804) 225-2600	Maintain student loan debt	SCHEV.edu/home opens in new tab	Profiteer; Education Department’s pseudo complaint department; recommended by ED’s loan servicer CRI (another profiteer) here: https://cri.studentaid.gov/content/additionalresources
Washington Washington Student Loan Advocate at the Washington Student Achievement Council (state agency) (833) 881-0397	Maintain student loan debt	WSAC.WA.gov/loan-advocacy	Profiteer; Education Department’s pseudo-complaint department; recommended by ED’s loan servicer CRI (another profiteer) here: https://cri.studentaid.gov/content/additionalresources
Young Invincibles	Cancel student debt	younginvincibles.org	“we use research to identify persistent problems facing young adults’ economic security and generate new policy ideas to tackle those challenges”

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