North Carolina HBCU to pay off pandemic-related student debt

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Another historically Black university in North Carolina has announced it will pay off all outstanding balances for students as a response to pandemic-related debt.

Johnson C. Smith University will cancel about $300,000 in debts, The Charlotte Observer reported Friday.

Earlier this month, Livingstone College in Salisbury said it would forgive more than $2.8 million in debt for students who attended during the 2021 spring semester. N.C. Central University in Durham has cleared more than $10 million in student debt, using federal COVID-19 relief funds to help a fourth of the student population.

Many of these programs are possible because of the federal CARES Act. The funds also provided all returning JCSU students with direct relief last fall: $2,500 for returning students, and $2,000 for new students, according to the university.

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