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Student Debt Forgiveness for Higher Educators

By raising our voices together, we have won improvements to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program that are changing lives.
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By: National Education Association
Published: September 2022

Student Debt

We know that nearly half of higher-ed faculty and staff took out loans to pay for their higher education, and many are still struggling to pay it back while making ends meet.  

Through their unions, NEA members are making a difference. By raising our voices together, we have won improvements to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, enabling thousands of educators to erase their debt. Last year, University of Maine associate professor Rob Glover had $150,000 in debt forgiven through PSLF. This year, UMass Amherst assistant professor Shane Mecklenburger had $70,000 in debt forgiven. 

NEA has the tools and the resources that higher-ed faculty and staff need to navigate PSLF and take advantage of the new White House cancellation program. 

PSLF for Higher Ed Faculty & Staff

NEA student debt experts walk through the process to fill out the PSLF waiver and ensure higher education faculty & staff get the cancellation they deserve.

NEA Research: Student debt among higher educators 

Our researchers have measured the depth of higher educators’ debt and its financial and emotional impact. 

Learn more about faculty debt

Learn more about Higher Ed Staff Debt

Need Help? Get Help!

The NEA Student Debt Navigator is free for all NEA members. 

Check it out!

Join NEA Higher Ed!

We’re facing challenges we never expected, and faculty and staff like you are rising to the occasion. But you shouldn’t have to do this alone. Together we are the biggest and loudest advocates for our campuses, our colleagues, our students, and ourselves.
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Learn more about NEA Higher Ed

Our work as higher education faculty, staff and graduate assistants is fundamental to the well-being of this nation. As NEA members, we embrace the mission of our national union — “to prepare every student to succeed in a diverse and interdependent world”
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Great public schools for every student

The National Education Association (NEA), the nation's largest professional employee organization, is committed to advancing the cause of public education. NEA's 3 million members work at every level of education—from pre-school to university graduate programs. NEA has affiliate organizations in every state and in more than 14,000 communities across the United States.
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