On Friday, April 8, when the United Way of Greater Greensboro’s “Lunch and Learn Series” is hosted by United Way Young Leaders, the topic of discussion – one that’s now a heated debate across the country – will be whether or not the government should forgive student loans.

United Way of Greater Greensboro’s End Poverty: The Lunch and Learn Series on April 8 will run from noon to 1 p.m., and it will focus on overcoming the effects of student debt. 

 The free Zoom event, which will be hosted by the local United Way’s Young Leaders affinity group, will feature speaker Demarcus Andrews –a North Carolina Policy and Outreach Associate at the NC Center for Responsible Lending.  Demarcus has also served as the Policy Advocate at Toxic Free NC – a non-profit organization that seeks to advance environmental health and justice in the state. While there, he built and ran coalitions for Toxic Free and he engaged members of the General Assembly.

Demarcus graduated with a B.A degree in Political Science from Gardner-Webb University and received a Master’s in Public Policy from the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University.

The question that’s been getting a lot of attention under the Presidency of Joe Biden lately, is this: “How is the student debt crisis crippling The American Dream?”  That somewhat loaded question will be the focus of the virtual lunch meeting.

According to United Way officials, “Understanding the link between the student debt crisis and its impact on local individuals and families, United Way of Greater Greensboro recently signed onto a public statement of support for the Center for Responsible Lending and the NC Coalition for Responsible Lending’s Student Debt Campaign. That campaign seeks to raise awareness about the student debt crisis and petition the federal government to forgive student loan debt.”

Lauren Forbis, marketing and communications manager for the local United Way, said the student debt crisis in this country isn’t just “an individual financial issue.” She said it’s an “issue of equity,” as well.

 She added that the group’s young leaders are looking forward to bringing attention to this important topic, and it should be a shared learning experience for participants.

Whether you are for forgiving student loan debt or not, it could be a pretty intriguing discussion since there are those with strong feelings on both sides.