1. Parent's (or grandparents) and student's not appropriately preparing for debt that a student will incur. If you know there is going to be a large debt in the future, stop buying and save. No one need's x-mas presents, no one need's that $30k car, no one need's to go on vacation. We as a culture are in the habit of spending and then complaining about our college debt.
2. Paying for college tuitions that we really don't need. If you don't have the available fund's to pay $20k a year for your undergrad, then don't. Go to a community college and pay 1/3 of the cost. Or better yet, take half the classes, live at home, create a budget, and pay for your school (or at least books) as you go. I have never heard of anyone being turned down for a job because of their undergrad being from a no-name college. Usually it's because the students want the "college experience" and then have to reap the cost of it later.
3. Mis-management of available fund's after college. College debt is debt. It may be a little more flexible than a credit card, but debt is debt. Live in the smallest house you can find, buy older cars, no vacations, no eating out. Pay off the debt that you agreed to, and then move on. I've seen too many people buying large homes, new vehicles, buying junk, and then complaining that they still have student debt.
4. Only go to college for a purpose, not because you feel the "need" to. Stop going to college just to go. Go to college with a purpose that will impact your life later in your years. So many people begin college no knowing at all what they want to do, change majors, and end up doing nothing related to their education.
5. Spend on your degree based upon your expected return. If you are getting your degree in liberal arts, do not spend $80k on your degree - you will not receive a balanced return on your investment.
Now, this article really has to do with parents and grandparent's co-signing for students and how the parents/grandparents are now on the hook for this debt. If there were required curriculums in high schools on how to manage money and how to manage debt, a lot of these types of articles would disappear. Or better yet, if people were not allowed credit until their student loans were paid.
Some just can't afford to pay off loan's quickly, and I feel for them. But if you are making $70k a year and cannot pay off your loans, you are mismanaging your money.
In regard's to the elderly in this article that are on the hook for this student debt, I have no remorse. They have lived long enough to understand money management and debt. If they allowed their grandchildren free access to debt using their credit, then they should either have a plan in place for repayment or been willing to bankroll the debt themselves.