President Obama’s controversial U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan recently announced he would be resigning from his position in December of this year. While Duncan has been lauded in some corners for increasing teacher accountability in public schools and the rollout of the Common Core program, many have criticized his push for unregulated charter schools that use federal funds without meaningful oversight.

One of the most troubling aspects of Duncan’s tenure is the immense increase in student debt from $666 million at the start of his term to $1.3 trillion in 2015. The Department of Education has done very little to address the recent growth of student debt, even though it poses a significant threat to American higher education. Duncan’s successor, John King Jr., has considerable experience as Deputy Secretary of Education and former New York State Commissioner of Education. His position on student debt reform is unclear. To successfully steer American education in the right direction, King must devote more time and resources to reducing student loan debt than his predecessor.

The student loan crisis is quickly spinning out of control, as 1 in 4 Americans who have student debt fall behind or default on their payments. Last month, the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau released a 151-page report detailing harmful practices within the largely unregulated student loan industry, including obstacles to refinancing, widespread misinformation, arbitrary fee increases and penalties. A significant part of the crisis can be attributed to the Department of Education’s loan contractors who are charged with collecting and applying debt payments. These contractors have little oversight and have been accused of cheating Americans on their federal loans.

These reports all indicate the Department of Education’s negligence when it comes to regulating and reforming the student loan industry. Duncan’s work may have had a substantial impact on the K-12 educational system, but he failed to address the growing crisis of debt that looms over American higher education. King’s proposals for improving the system remain uncertain, but the growing student debt burden must be one of the central focuses of his administration.

The purpose of college loans is to give students access to a university education and a chance at a better life, not to impose an impossible burden that will follow them throughout their careers. The Department of Education is obligated to rectify the unregulated market of college debt that values profit over the wellbeing of America’s students. King only has a year in office to make the necessary reforms, but this is enough time to reverse the rising tide of student debt. By giving this issue the attention it deserves he can hopefully lay the groundwork for positive change in the industry.

Opinions expressed on the editorial pages are not necessarily those of WSN, and our publication of opinions is not an endorsement of them. 

A version of this article appeared in the October 13 print edition. Email Anand Balaji at [email protected].