On Friday, August 10, Governor John Hoeven of North Dakota declared it to be “Student Loans at Bank of North Dakota Day” in honor of the Bank of North Dakota’s exemplary role as a student loan lender in that state. The BND claims that it was the first institution to issue a federal student loan, and BND has issued more than 200,000 student loans worth more than $1.8 billion since the program’s inception.

The Bank of North Dakota, like many other student loan lenders, is an integral part of its community. Judging by the loan volume over the past 40 years, the statewide community in North Dakota wants to deal with its own banks and lenders. There is value in working with a lender that you know and trust and North Dakota has a real investment in the training and education of its students.

North Dakota is feeling the pinch of losing its young people to other states. Agriculture, for example, is one of North Dakota’s primary economic engines. Agriculture is about much more than simple farming, and it requires highly skilled and educated individuals to keep the engine running smoothly. North Dakota has a big investment in training its young people because North Dakota’s agricultural industry depends upon them. North Dakota also needs young people to fill the thousands of other opportunities that are available in North Dakota each year.

Like many other “northern tier” states, North Dakota is a hard sell for people who weren’t born there. North Dakota isn’t at the top of most peoples’ lists when they’re looking for opportunities for themselves and their families, so it’s critical that North Dakota keep the young people it has. That’s exactly why the Bank of North Dakota has been making student loans for 40 years. Its loan program is an investment in North Dakota.

For the Bank of North Dakota, making student loans is not about defrauding its customers. It’s not about making a quick buck off of the Federal government. It’s not about gouging borrowers with “high” interest rates. It’s about building the community in North Dakota. It’s about a local bank investing in its own community. It’s about delivering what North Dakota’s industries need most: talented, educated people. To suggest that the Bank of North Dakota has any other motive is insulting to both the bank and to the people who have benefited from the Bank’s lending program.

The Governor of North Dakota recognizes the value that a local lender has provided for his state, but the people in Washington sure don’t. Each state has its own local student loan lender, and under the new legislation, most of those lenders won’t be participating in the student loan program anymore.

Call your Congressional representatives and Senators and tell them that they’re making a big mistake by throwing lenders like the Bank of North Dakota out of the program. Tell them you want to preserve your choice in lending.