When her daughters were born, she didn't think she'd be able to pay for their education on her own.
Henry had to decide between taking on a student-debt load herself or delaying college for her kids, after a divorce and an unexpected lack of child support. She made a choice.
Henry told Insider that college is what they have always wanted. She knew she was going to college. When my youngest said she was going to go, I was not going to stop her.
To make sure her kids could afford college, Henry used a type of federal loan for parents that covers the full cost of attendance minus any financial aid the child already received.
Henry took out the maximum amount for her older daughter, who graduated in three and a half years from a public college with a partial scholarship and $8,000 in student loans per semester under her own name. She expects her student debt to double once her younger daughter graduates from college in 25 years, because she doesn't typically start collecting payments until six months after a student's completion of school.
The debt from those loans can accumulate quicker than anticipated, as parents who cannot afford to pay out of pocket for their kids' college experiences can. Since the federal lender doesn't assess a parent's income when loans are disbursed, it's easy for a parent to take out a PLUS loan. President Joe Biden has granted student-loan forgiveness to certain groups, but parents won't be one of them.
Henry said that since she took out loans, it was her obligation to repay them. With so many loan-repayment andforgiveness programs out there, she wished she could be included in some form of assistance or relief, rather than paying the cost of sending her kids to college for the rest of their lives.
Henry said that he was the sole provider and that taking out loans was the only way for his kids to get an education.
She said that Henry had a telecommunications job in Texas that allowed her to keep her family afloat. After being laid off, Henry's income took a hit, and she now makes a five-figure salary.
She didn't know what her monthly loan payments would look like after the pause on payments expired, but she knew it would be difficult to afford them. Payments will resume on May 1.
Henry said that he would not be able to make those payments.
Henry did her research before taking out loans. She said she asked a financial-aid representative to walk her through her options, and that the loan companies try to make it easy to take out loans.
A number of parents have noticed that. Jeff O'Kelley has a $104,000 student-debt load for his son's education through a process he described as "extraordinarily simple".
Biden promised to approve $10,000 in student-loan forgiveness for every federal student. Henry said she wished that parents were included in the plan.
Henry said that he doesn't meet any other criteria and that loan forgiveness for parents would be a relief.
It is not clear if any borrowers will get student-loan relief soon. Student-loan payments are set to resume on May 1 after being paused three times by Biden. Even as lawmakers and advocates have pushed for either another extension of that pause or student-loan cancellation, Biden and his administration have expressed hesitancy in doing so, placing the matter in Congress.
Henry said she was happy that groups of borrowers had already gotten debt canceled, but she wanted relief for parents as well.
There are some initiatives that cost between $10,000 and $20,000. We don't fall under that because it's only for select groups. It puts a lot of pressure on a parent.
Do you have a story about student debt? You can reach out to her at asheffey@insider.com.
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