As of March 2022, over 45 million residents in the United States had outstanding principal and interest balances on their federal student loans, with an average balance of $35,685 per borrower. The Census Bureau reports 156 million residents who have at least some college education, meaning nearly 3 in 10 (29%) who attended or are attending higher education have outstanding student debt. This results in a total of over $1.6 trillion in outstanding debt, not including balances from private loans. Note that 9% of these borrowers were unable to be categorized into one of the fifty states (these categories included Puerto Rico, District of Columbia, Other, and Not Reported).
This post will explore and further dive into the student loan portfolio data published by the U.S. Department of Education.
The Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) data are an experimental data product developed by the Census Bureau that provides earnings and employment outcomes for college and university graduates by degree level, degree major, and post-secondary institution. The data are generated by matching university transcript data from participating universities with a national database of jobs compiled by the Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics Program (LEHD) at the Census Bureau.
On June 8th, the Hartford Data Collaborative (HDC) hosted its first Data Walk focused on data about youth engagement in Hartford. Earlier this spring, the Hartford Data Collaborative launched its inaugural cohort of Hartford Youth Researchers. HDC coordinators Kate Eikel and Geethika Fernando co-led the presentation of data with Hartford Youth Researchers Shian Earlington, Nicaury Espinoza, Nate Gardner, Winder Munoz, and Daniel White. Officials from the City of Hartford Department of Families, Children, Youth, and Recreation; the Mayor’s office; the Hartford Public Schools; the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving; and HDC community partners including Capital Workforce Partners, COMPASS Youth Collaborative, and Our Piece of the Pie, attended the presentation and engaged in a discussion about the findings afterwards.
On Monday, August 19, 2019, the CTData Collaborative hosted over 30 partners for a data forum on education and workforce development with the state’s Chief Data Officer, Tyler Kleykamp. Attendees included data lovers and users across multiple sectors including nonprofits, state agencies, philanthropy, higher education, advocacy organizations, for-profits, and independent consultants. CTData Executive Director, Michelle Riordan-Nold, remarked, “The diverse group of stakeholders engaged in the forum demonstrates the complexity of the topic and the necessity to address educational and workforce needs in the state.”
This is a landmark decade for women in the labor force. Women represent nearly half of the labor force both nationally (47.2%) and in the state of Connecticut (48.6%). In addition, according to the Wall Street Journal, 2019 marks “the first year that women make up the majority of the college-educated labor force, a milestone that is already altering benefits packages offered by companies.” These changes are insightful given that labor force participation is even higher when we look at women who have had a child in the past 12 months.
