Press Release - White House Continues Effort to Stop Student Interest Rate Increase

Today, the President will travel to Washington-Lee High School in Arlington, Virginia, to speak with students and their parents about the need to prevent interest rates on federal subsidized student loans from doubling on July 1. While at the school, the President and Secretary Duncan will hold a roundtable discussion with a small group of seniors and their parents before the President delivers remarks to members of the junior and senior classes and many of their parents about the importance of their having a fair shot at an affordable higher education and the skills they need to find a good job. The roundtable is pooled press and the students and parents noted below will be participating in the discussion.

On Monday, the President will hold a conference call with elected officials and student government leaders from across the country to discuss the need to prevent rates from doubling on July 1.

On Thursday, Vice President Biden will address a group of students and representatives from higher education and youth organizations who are meeting at the White House. His remarks will focus on the importance of keeping higher education affordable and accessible for more than 7 million students by preventing student loan interest rates from doubling on July 1st.

Members of the Cabinet and Senior Administration officials will be discussing the interest rate issue in events across the country next week: Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis will hold an event in Chicago, Illinois on Tuesday, in Columbus, Ohio on Wednesday, and in Phoenix, Arizona next Friday; Small Business Administrator Karen Mills will hold an event in Denver, Colorado on Tuesday; United States Trade Representative Ron Kirk will hold an event in Dallas, Texas on Thursday; and Senior Administration officials from the Departments of Education, Agriculture and Labor will hold events in Massachusetts, North Carolina, Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota and Texas throughout the week.

Today's Roundtable Participants Include:

Amirah Delwin (High School Senior) & Kezia Truesdale (Mom)
Amirah Delwin is a senior at Washington-Lee High School. She will attend Old Dominion University in the fall and wants to major in psychology. Amirah will receive subsidized Stafford loans to help pay for her education. Her stepmom Kezia Truesdale is an elementary school counselor in Maryland. Amirah has lived in Arlington her whole life and has five siblings. Her older sister, Hadiya, attends Northern Virginia Community College. Her brother, Esias, is a sophomore at Washington-Lee High School and her other siblings are 1, 5, and 6 years old.

Brendan Craig (High School Senior) & Tim Craig (Dad)
Brendan Craig is a senior at Washington-Lee High School. He will attend Virginia Tech next year and plans to major in general engineering. Brendan will receive subsidized Stafford loans to help pay for his education. His father Tim Craig is a pastor at Mount Olivet United Methodist Church in Arlington, VA and his mother, Ann Craig, is a kindergarten teacher in Fairfax County, VA. Brendan has three sisters. His two older sisters attend George Mason University and both received subsidized Stafford loans. His younger sister, Meghan, is an 11th grade student at Washington-Lee.

Rina Castaneda (High School Senior) & Elma Molina (Mom)
Rina Castaneda is a senior at Washington-Lee High School. She is going to Virginia Commonwealth University in the fall and will receive subsidized Stafford loans to help pay for her education. Her mother Elma Molina is a dental assistant and her father works at restaurant Teatro Goldoni. She has two younger half-brothers and one younger half-sister. She will be the first person in her family to attend college.