Gettin' rich off of student loans?

Today's Washington Post leads with an investigative story about the nonprofit EduCap, an organization which provides loans to students in increasing amounts. With federal aid failing to keep up with the surging costs of college expenses, the volume of private student loans is expected to surpass government loans by 2015. However, private loans' interest rates are not regulated, and they are often much higher than government loans, which are currently capped at 6.8 percent. According to the Post, EduCap has issued college loans to more than 350,000 students, allowing some families to borrow up to $50,000 a year at rates as high as 18 percent. Along with other private student lenders, EduCap is currently under scrutiny for its annual profits. The nonprofit bought a Gulfstream jet worth about $30 million and paid its CEO Catherine Reynolds $1 million annually. However, Reynolds said she has helped students nationwide by creating competition in the student loan industry that has aided families by reducing the overall cost of private loans. "We're here to make a difference and do good," she said. "And I think we've done that." Read the whole article here.