I keep reading about student loans and now some new problems with certain groups.

A student loan should be treated the same as a loan to a kid wanting to start a business. PERIOD.

Will it produce revenue sufficient to pay off the debt and allow the person to live?  If not they shouldn't get a loan.
Further, what's their record?  That is, what is their grade throughout school and what current debt do they have?  What work have they done and what do their former employers say about their work ethic?

Not everybody is college material.  About 45% of college freshmen drop out of college.  It doesn't mean no future if you don't have a degree, and it doesn't mean you can never get a degree if you later mature or find a field that you want to pursue and it requires a degree.