U.S. Department of Education Comes to Bremen HS

Bremen's Personal Finance Teacher Mr. Virgil Harris recently hosted United States Department of Education Loan Analyst Ms. Tiffinie Nelson-Julien to speak to his class. Ms. Nelson-Julien is a liaison between the President of the United States and the U.S. Department of Education. She spoke about debt and how to avoid it as well as personal cases of American’s not being able to repay their student loans.

Nelson-Julien said she steps in when American’s write letters to Congress and the President of the United States asking for loan assistance and/or forgiveness because of hardships. Nelson-Julien shared real letters and responses with the BHS Personal Finance classes as well as came up with scenarios for the students to work with groups on during the discussion.

The second half of the presentation focused on job searching. Nelson-Julien provided websites and information about federal jobs that are in demand for students that are looking to join the workforce after high school.

“The students were engaged, attentive, and asked great questions during the presentation,” said Harris. Freshmen Personal Finance student Yarithza Ramirez said, “The presentation gave valuable information to help me make decisions about my future because it opened up a new perspective on student loans and how to avoid them.” Freshmen Stephanie Karwaczka said, “I would recommend this presentation for next year’s [personal finance] students. It is one thing to hear about debt from your teacher, but it is another thing to hear it from someone who specializes in just loans. Seeing the letters were like a slap to a face. This is not just a concept anymore, it is a real problem.”

Mr. Harris would like to thank Freshmen Jala Blackwell for opening the dialog between Bremen High School and Ms. Nelson-Julien. The connection was made after Jala approached Mr. Harris and told him that her aunt works for the United Stated Department of Education and often talks with her about many of the topics that they were discussing in class. He would also like to thank United States Department of Education Loan Analyst Ms. Tiffinie Nelson-Julien for taking time out of her busy schedule to talk to Bremen students.