Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley brought BTU member Priscilla Valentine as her guest to the State of the Union on March 5, 2024.
“It was student loans that put that dream within reach: she got her bachelor’s degree from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in 2000; then, her master’s from Wheelock College in 2003, before its 2018 merger with Boston University.
She came to teach at Boston Public Schools as a single mother struggling to pay down the debt.
“Those loans have been like a black cloud hanging over me my entire career,” she said in an interview with WBUR. “I’ve been everywhere: from forbearance to default, repayment plans, in and out, over the years.”
As of 2023, Valentine owed over $117,000 — far more, she said, than she’d originally borrowed. Meanwhile, her credit score sank, locking her in financial instability.
“Whether it was a mortgage, a credit card, a vehicle: either I didn’t qualify, or I did and the [interest] rate was very high,” she said.”
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