A government program designed to aid public service workers is about pay off.
Public Service Loan Forgiveness — which was part of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act — will relieve the first group of eligible workers in 2017.
PSLF was signed into law in 2007 by President George W. Bush. Under the PSLF, a person's remaining federal loan balance will be forgiven if someone works full time for a nonprofit or the government for at least 10 years. Firefighters, teachers, military personnel and nurses are among the qualifying workers. Only federal direct loans are eligible for the program.
Jess Eckle, a senior studying special education, looks to teach in a high school setting as an intervention specialist in the Athens area.
“By the time I graduate I will have almost $40,000 in loans to pay off plus interest,” Eckle said in an email. “Having the opportunity to have these forgiven, even after paying on them for a few years, would mean that I wouldn't have to make my future family and children suffer financially.”
According to Salary Genius, the beginning annual salary for a special needs teacher in Athens is $34,191.
Jack Kuntzman, a senior studying geography, said he would like to become a government worker, either at the local, state or federal level after graduating.
Kuntzman, who has “a little over $20,000 in federal loans” on top of $50,000 in private loans, said the program is one he would take advantage of due to his expectations of having remaining loans due after the 10-year mark.
“Tuition prices have risen to immense levels,” Kuntzman said in an email. “Nobody seems to think about it beforehand because higher education is seen as a necessity.”
Although some view the program as beneficial, others worry about how the forgiven loans will be funded. Analysts are concerned with the lack of a cap on how many loans can be forgiven per person, and the Department of Education estimates 331,000 borrowers will receive PSLF through 2022, with a total of $6.3 billion in debt forgiven, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Spencer Smith, vice president for communication in Graduate Student Senate, will be graduating with a masters degree in English this spring. He began his work in public education in 2013 and sees hope in the future of the PSLF program, but is worried about where the money for the program will come from.
"What other government programs will be cut to free up money for it? But honestly, I think education is very important so I think this program is a fair justification for use of tax money," Smith said.
