President Barack Obama delivers remarks on interest rates on student loans and affordable higher education, at Washington-Lee High School in Arlington, Va., May 4, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
Today, President Obama continued his push to prevent interest rates on students loans from doubling on July 1 — as they're currently scheduled to do.
Unless Congress takes action, more than 7 million students around the country will rack up an average of $1,000 of extra debt each.
In a speech today at Washington Lee High School in Arlington, Virginia, the President told students and parents that education has become more than a luxury.
"[It] is an economic imperative that every American should be able to afford," he said.
The Obama administration has taken a number of steps that to keep higher education within reach of the middle class — including reforming the student loans system and using the savings to help more people afford college.
But it's going to take Congress to keep interest rates on federal student loans from doubling, and today, the President called on lawmakers to act:
Fonte: White House