If Teachers Work at Low-Income Schools, Should Their College Debt Be Forgiven?

FYI: Mental health counselors DO qualify for this program if they work in an underserved area with underserved children. I had my grad schools loans (well, much of them) forgiven after 5 years.

Not many are aware of this. When the program director signed off on my paperwork, she told me that she had no idea and had me share my story as an in-service with about 200 other clinicians. I was the only one who had been told of the opportunity. Unfortunately for them, many of them had by then consolidated their loans and we no longer eligible.

 

Which programs allow private student loans to be forgiven?

The only programs I've seen that pay back teacher's debts are for federal student loans only, and only up to a certain amount a year. The programs I saw did not pay back private student loans. One program I saw only paid back $5000 or so a year for federal student loans. So, after 4 years of teaching at a horrible school, the teacher got $20,000 total of federal student loans paid back.

How on earth did the above person's friend rack up $100,000+ in *federal* student loan debt? I didn't think the limits on federal student loans could go that high.

And, I support some debt forgiveness for teachers if:

1) BOTH *PRIVATE* and federal student loans can be forgiven up to the set limit and

2) Only forgiveness up to a certain amount ($5000, maybe a bit more, a year... definitely not $100,000 total worth of debt forgiveness). $100,000+ in debt to be a teacher is personal irresponsibility at it's worst. (Yes, I have huge debt too, bad idea.. but I'm also not a teacher with average teacher salaries.)

It definitely should not be an unlimited amount of debt forgiveness--- certainly not over $100,000,... and probably not even $50,000. The idea of these loan payback programs is to reward those who do public good or go into public service. At some point the personal reward for such service should be unlimited.

 

How do you propose private loans be forgiven? I mean, you are certainly welcome to attempt to negotiate such an arrangement but the federal government can't forgive a loan that is underwritten by a private citizen or bank.

 

And that's why I don't buy that someone got $100k worth of student loans forgiven for working in a under served area for five years.

 

The government could write a check for the "teaching grant" directly to the private loan lender for the same amount as the loan forgiveness of federal student loans. $5000 a year, or whatever the limit is now.

Private or federal student loan forgiveness, both would cost them money.

 

What does "underserved" mean? Does it just mean poor? Is it based on the average or median income of the residents?
Or does underserved mean an area in which the people get far fewer government subsidies and services than the national average? I think if you look at a community in which half the people are on government assistance, that is actually an overserved area compared to another one in which 5% of the people are being served by the government.

 

Is this a real question or just an attempt at making a political statement? It isn't that hard to google finding out the criteria for loan forgiveness.

Let me google that for you

 

Plus, we'd have to change the name of the board from discussion group to "Google it yourself dumbass", or some other such thing. I suppose I could find the answer to everything on google, it would save me time in talking to other people (gross!). Then we would not have to worry about discussions and all.

Besides, who's not a fan of 5 year old internet meme's?

 

Point taken. That's what I get for posting after reading a frustrating email from a student...

Doing some research on the first link that comes up using the 5-year-old-meme provided me with more information. While teachers are subject to the "underserved" provision (more on that later), other positions aren't.

Here's the eligibility (context-wise) for those working for non-profit agencies (as I have):

You must be employed full time (in any position) by a public service organization, or must be serving in a full-time AmeriCorps or Peace Corps position. Organizations that meet the definition of “public service organization” for purposes of the PSLF Program are listed below.

A government organization (including a federal, state, local, or tribal organization, agency, or entity; a public child or family service agency; or a tribal college or university); A non-profit, tax-exempt organization under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (includes most not-for*-profit private schools, colleges, and universities); A private, non-profit organization (that is not a labor union or a partisan political organization) that provides one or more of the following public services:
Emergency management
Military service
Public safety
Law enforcement
Public interest law services
Early childhood education (including licensed or regulated health care, Head Start, and state-funded pre-kindergarten)
Public service for individuals with disabilities and the elderly
Public health (including nurses, nurse practitioners, nurses in a clinical setting, and full-time professionals engaged in health care practitioner occupations and health care support occupations)
Public education
Public library services
School library or other school-based services

The requirements as they relate to teachers includes the note about being in an underserved school ("as designated by the U.S. Department of Education as having a high concentration of students from low-income families").

Hope that's more helpful than the meme.