The Real College Debt Crisis: How Student Borrowing Threatens Financial Well-Being and Erodes the American Dream - William Elliott III, Melinda Lewis
Thursday, January 7, 2016 | 6:30 p.m. | Central Library, 14 W. 10th St.
College graduates last May held an unenviable distinction: They left school deeper in debt than any class before them. Those who'd taken out student loans owed, on average, a little over $35,000, more than doubling the amount of two decades earlier.
In a discussion of their new book, William Elliott III and Melinda Lewis examine the dilemma of young people beginning their careers with a negative net worth. The two University of Kansas professors call, in part, for states and the federal government to establish savings accounts for students during their childhood rather than awarding thousands of dollars at the end of high school - a move they say would promote dramatically different behavior and saving strategies for families.
In Football We Trust
Saturday, January 9, 2016 | 11 a.m. | Plaza Branch, 4801 Main St.
Football holds a natural appeal to America's emerging Polynesian population, whose warrior heritage fits a sport noted for stunning athleticism and on-the-field violence. The documentary In Football We Trust spotlights the connection, following four young Polynesian players in Salt Lake City, Utah - a chief source of the modern influx of Pacific Islanders into the NFL - as they strive to overcome gang violence and near-poverty through the promise of college and professional football. It's seen as a pipeline to the American Dream.
The film, a Sundance Festival selection in 2015, is screened in the Truman Forum Auditorium as part of the PBS-backed Indie Lens Pop-Up community cinema initiative. A panel discussion of the documentary's themes follows.
Co-presented by KCPT-TV and the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Programming is free at the Kansas City Public Library and free parking is available at all Library locations. Event attendees can RSVP at kclibrary.org or at 816.701.3407.