<div class='node-body'><p>New data released today by the Federal Reserve shows, while general consumer debt has decreased in the first quarter of this year, student loan debt in particular continues to aggressively increase. Overall student loan debt has skyrocketed in the past 10 years, rising by 275%.</p>
<p>According to the Federal Reserve, student loan debt hit $904 billion in the first quarter of 2012; however, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau puts the number at the $1 trillion mark.</p></div><div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-hp-image">
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<p><a href="http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/05/31-8" target="_blank">read more</a></p>