Martha Kanter joined Congressman John Sarbanes (D-Md.) at the University of Maryland Baltimore. Photo by Ed Fishel courtesy of UofM Baltimore.
Earlier today Under Secretary of Education Martha Kanter joined Congressman John Sarbanes (D-Md.) at the University of Maryland Baltimore to announce new efforts from the Department of Education to help public servants—including veterans, nurses, and teachers—take advantage of Public Service Loan Forgiveness. Public Service Loan Forgiveness cancels the balance of a borrower’s federal student loan debt after they have served full time in a public service role for at least 10 years, while making on-time qualifying loan payments each month.
The new materials from ED include an employment certification form that allows borrowers to keep track of eligible employment and payments. This form will help those borrowers who have made a service commitment to this country while honoring their responsibility to repay their federal student loans and allow them to more easily receive loan forgiveness when they are able. In addition, these new materials will allow borrowers to find out now if their job and loan payments will qualify them for loan forgiveness in the future as well as how many payments they have left to make – information that is not currently available.
Public Service Loan Forgiveness was established through the bipartisan College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007, and applies to careers such as active-duty military officers and veterans, public school teachers, law enforcement officials, firefighters, and many nonprofit employees. Borrowers must make 120 monthly payments on their eligible federal student loans after Oct. 1, 2007, before they qualify for the loan forgiveness.
More details about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, including a detailed Q&A and copy of the form, can be found at: www.studentaid.ed.gov/publicservice.
Sara Gast is a Press Aide at the U.S. Department of Education
Experts Convene for College Completion Symposium at ED
How do we meet the diverse needs of the 21st century scholar and meet the President’s 2020 goal of once again leading the world in college graduation rates.
Secretary Duncan speaks at the College Completion Symposium. Official Department of Education photo by Leslie Williams.
This is the challenge Secretary Duncan posed to researchers, policy experts, and practitioners from 30 postsecondary institutions from across the country who shared evidence-based best practices and ideas during a one-day symposium on college completion at the U.S. Department of Education on Monday.
“All the good ideas are out there with you guys,” Duncan said. “I urge you to be creative and thoughtful.”
If there was one important takeaway from the presentations and discussions, it was that one size does not fit all.
Tom Brock, Director of the Young Adults and Postsecondary Education Policy Area from the nonprofit MDRC, presented results from studies looking at student services programs to address the benefits of “increasing the amount of counseling and advising students receive and attaching students to tutoring services on campus.”
Regina Bain, Regional Vice President of the nonprofit organization Posse Foundation, said she learned a lot from the various institutions represented at the symposium.
“I appreciated the idea of online coaching tools. I really believe in one-on-one, intensive, multilayered coaching and advising for individuals,” she said.
The symposium is one more step in ED’s commitment to meeting the President’s 2020 goal, and ensuring that America’s graduates are prepared for the jobs of the 21st century.
Click here to read President Obama’s Blueprint for making college more affordable.
Natalie Torentinos is an intern in the Office of Communications and Outreach
