Education Secretary, Betsy Devos, has appointed Arthur Wayne Johnson, the CEO of private student loan company Reunion Student Loan Finance Corporation, to run the Office of Federal Student Aid, which manages $1.2 trillion in student debt.
The announcement Tuesday did not mention Johnson’s role as founder and chief executive of Reunion Student Loan Finance Corporation, based in South Dakota.
Rather, DeVos praised a dissertation Johnson, 61, completed last year through a weekend PhD program at Mercer University in Atlanta.
“He actually wrote the book on student loan debt,” DeVos said in a statement.
The announcement came almost a month after James Runcie abruptly resigned as chief operating officer of the Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA). Runcie, as he left with three years remaining in his term, warned of what he described as brewing management problems within the Education Department. He complained in a letter to staff of being “encumbered from exercising” his “authorities to properly lead.”
DeVos, in a statement, called Johnson “the right person to modernize FSA.” She added: “He will bring a unique combination of CEO-level operating skills and an in-depth understanding of the needs and issues associated with student loan borrowers and their families.”
It was a stark departure for Johnson, who had started his career as a financial consultant and ascended to executive-level positions with credit card and banking firms before starting his own student loan company in 2013.
That company, Reunion Student Loan Finance Corporation, targets the “underserved, premium quality segment of the private student loan market” to refinance debt into lower monthly payments, Johnson wrote on his résumé. The company’s website promotes Reunion as providing a “fast, smooth and efficient refinancing experience.”
I hope this choice is heavily vetted. It could mean ending government subsidized loans and outsourcing of the operations. Our young people have it hard enough trying to finance a college education.
