Latest news with #Mayotte
BBC News
30-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Africa Daily Focus on Africa: South Africa's human trafficking problem
A South African woman, Racquel "Kelly" Smith, her boyfriend Jacquen Appollis and their friend Steveno van Rhyn have been given life sentences after being convicted of trafficking her missing 6-year-old daughter, Joshlin Smith. The case has captivated and horrified audiences around the world. It has also highlighted the wider issue of human trafficking in South Africa. An anti-trafficking campaigner responds to the rulling and explains the extend of problem in the country. Also, Kenya and Mayotte sign a trade deal to boost economic ties. What will be traded? And a tribute to and exploration of, Kenya's literary giant Ngugi wa Thiong'o, who has died at the age of 87. Presenter: Richard Kagoe Technical Producer: Jonathan Greer Producers: Nyasha Michelle, Tom Kavanagh and Amie Liebowitz in London. Charles Gitonga in Nairobi Senior Journalist: Karnie Sharp Editors: Alice Muthengi and Andre Lombard
BBC News
30-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Focus on Africa Joshlin Smith: South Africa's human trafficking problem
A South African woman, Racquel "Kelly" Smith, her boyfriend Jacquen Appollis and their friend Steveno van Rhyn have been given life sentences after being convicted of trafficking her missing 6-year-old daughter, Joshlin Smith. The case has captivated and horrified audiences around the world. It has also highlighted the wider issue of human trafficking in South Africa. An anti-trafficking campaigner responds to the rulling and explains the extent of problem in the country. Also, Kenya and Mayotte sign a trade deal to boost economic ties. What will be traded? And a tribute to and an exploration of, Kenya's literary giant Ngugi wa Thiong'o, who has died at the age of 87. Presenter: Richard Kagoe Technical Producer: Jonathan Greer Producers: Nyasha Michelle, Tom Kavanagh and Amie Liebowitz in London. Charles Gitonga in Nairobi Senior Journalist: Karnie Sharp Editors: Alice Muthengi and Andre Lombard
Boston Globe
22-04-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
Student loans in default will be sent for collection. Here's what to know for borrowers.
The department says it will soon begin sending notices on collection efforts, but there are options for borrowers to get out of default. Here are some key things to know. How will involuntary collection work? Beginning May 5, the department will begin involuntary collection through the Treasury Department's offset program. Borrowers who have student loans in default will receive communication from Federal Student Aid in the upcoming weeks with information about their options, according to the Education Department. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Involuntary collection means the government can garnish wages, intercept tax refunds and seize portions of Social Security checks and other benefit payments to go toward paying back the loan. Advertisement What is the difference between delinquent and default in my student loans? A student loan becomes delinquent when a borrower doesn't make a payment 90 days after its due date. If you continue to be delinquent on your loan for 270 days — or roughly nine months — then your loan goes into default. While being delinquent affects your credit score, going into default has more serious consequences such as wage garnishment. What happens when a loan goes into default? When you fall behind on a loan by 270 days, the loan appears on your credit report as being in default. Once a loan is in default the government will send the borrower into collections. Advertisement What can I do right now if my student loan is in default? The Education Department is recommending borrowers visit its Betsy Mayotte, president of The Institute for Student Loan Advisors, recommends loan rehabilitation as an option. Borrowers in default must ask their loan servicer to be placed into such a program. Typically, servicers ask for proof of income and expenses to calculate a payment amount. Once a borrower has paid on time for nine months in a row, they are taken out of default, Mayotte said. A loan rehabilitation can only be done once. What does forbearance mean? Student loan forbearance is a temporary pause on your student loan payments granted to borrowers who are experiencing financial difficulties. To apply for forbearance, borrowers must contact their loan servicer. Borrowers can be granted forbearance by their loan servicer for up to 12 months but interest will continue to accrue during this period.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
What happens to student loans if Department of Education closes? What to know in Arizona
President Donald Trump is seeking to eliminate the U.S. Department of Education, according to a draft of an executive order reviewed by USA TODAY. As Trump cannot fully eliminate the agency, the order would push Education Secretary Linda McMahon to pare down the department to "the maximum extent appropriate and permitted by law." Only Congress can abolish federal agencies. In addition to igniting a wave of worries about school funding, this news has prompted federal student loan holders or those considering taking on the loans to ask what will happen with that federal funding. Here's what experts are saying about how student loans may be impacted. McMahon said that key sources of education funds, such as federal student loans and Pell grants, will not be affected by the changes. The terms and conditions of those loans will not change either, said Betsy Mayotte, president of The Institute of Student Loan Advisors, a Massachusetts-based organization that provides free loan advice nationally to 12,000 students annually. For those who have qualified for federal aid calculated through the FAFSA form, or have received a Pell grant, loans are not on the chopping block, Mayotte said. Any changes would come only if Congress approves them and votes to approve a spending bill still being negotiated that won't be created until April or May. However, the student loans may be transferred to the Department of the Treasury if the department is eliminated as Trump said he plans to do, experts say. "Even if the loans were to move to a different agency, the terms and conditions would not change. This would not get rid of Public Service Loan Forgiveness programs (PSLF), for example. It would not change or privatize interest rates," Mayotte said. That's because those sorts of changes would not pass legal muster, she said. "The terms of these loans are written into statute. Congress has never retroactively changed or removed a benefit from an existing loan, and even in this Congress, I don't see them doing that now ... I just don't think student loans are high on their priority list, I think it's K-12, civil rights and DEI," Mayotte said. The Department of Education, which has been around in some form since just after the Civil War, works with educational institutions at the elementary, secondary and post-secondary levels, including colleges and universities. Its functions include: distributing federal education funding to educational institutions, enforcing federal civil rights laws to ensure equal access to education institutions that take federal dollars, overseeing federal student loans for postsecondary education, and collecting and assessing data on education in the U.S., including student achievement. The Department of Education has no say in overseeing school curriculums, which are decided at the state and local levels. USA TODAY reporters Joey Garrison and Zachary Schermele contributed to this article. This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: What happens to student loans if Department of Education closes?
NBC News
04-02-2025
- Business
- NBC News
As Trump considers ways to dismantle the Education Dept., here's what to know about your student loans
With the Trump administration looking for ways to close parts or all of the U.S. Department of Education, many of the country's 42 million federal student loan borrowers are likely feeling on edge. One of the Education Department's functions is underwriting the loans that enable millions of people each year to attend college and graduate school. It also administers the country's $1.6 trillion outstanding education debt tab. 'The anxiety levels are pretty high for borrowers right now,' said Betsy Mayotte, president of The Institute of Student Loan Advisors, a nonprofit that helps borrowers navigate the repayment of their debt. Closing the agency would require an act of Congress, experts say. Still, Trump administration officials are considering an executive order that could halt parts of the agency, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday. On the campaign trail, President Donald Trump said shuttering the department would be a priority. 'The President plans to fulfill a campaign promise by revaluating the future of the Department of Education,' said a White House spokesperson. Former President Jimmy Carter established the U.S. Department of Education in 1979. Since then, the department has faced other existential threats, with former President Ronald Reagan calling for its end and Trump, during his first term, attempting to merge it with the Labor Department. Efforts by the Trump administration to dismantle the Education Department likely will face criticism. To that point, 61% of likely voters say they oppose the Trump administration's use of an executive order to abolish the Education Department, according to a poll conducted by Data for Progress on behalf of the Student Borrower Protection Center and Groundwork Collaborative. Just 34% of respondents approve of such a move. The survey of 1,294 people was conducted Jan. 31 to Feb. 2. Here's what the possible changes to the department could mean for student loan borrowers. What would happen to my student loans? Even if the Education Department no longer existed, student loan debt would still be due, Mayotte said. 'Just because the entity that manages the loan changes, it in no way changes the terms [of the loan],' she said. For example, mortgages often get sold to other companies, and millions of student loan borrowers have recently had their accounts transferred to another servicer, Mayotte added. The Treasury Department would be the next most logical agency to administer student debt, Mayotte said. It's also possible that the Justice Department or the Department of Labor could carry out some of the Education Department's functions, according to a blog post by The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. Meanwhile, some Republicans have expressed interest in privatizing the federal student loan system, higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz said. This prospect worries consumer advocates, who point out that students need extra protections that are not required of private lenders. The federal student loan system is already plagued by problems, said Michele Shepard Zampini, senior director of college affordability at The Institute For College Access and Success. Transferring the loan accounts of tens of millions of people to another agency would only make things worse, she said. 'Borrowers and students need more stability, and this would create chaos,' Shepard Zampini said. Financial aid for new and current students could be delayed New and current students who rely on financial aid for college would likely experience delays if the Education Department is partially or fully shut down, Shepard Zampini said. That would be a major problem for families, she said. 'People can't go to college without student loans, unfortunately,' Shepard Zampini said. Kantrowitz agreed. 'Disruption is bad, very bad,' Kantrowitz said. 'During a transition, federal student aid might not become available for weeks or longer.'
