CEC Endorses Legislation to Provide Loan Forgiveness to Educators

The Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) has joined 50 organizations to endorse legislation to improve and extend upon the current Teacher Loan Forgiveness program. The new legislation called the Loan Forgiveness for Educators Act of 2022 eases the financial burden on educators with student loan debt. The bill would have the federal government make an educator’s monthly payments and forgive federal loans after five years of employment as an educator. It also extends loan forgiveness to early childhood educators and school leaders. The bill’s purpose is to “to enhance student access to a well-prepared, diverse, and stable educator workforce by eliminating debt burdens for educators in return for service teaching and leading in high need schools or early childhood education programs.” CEC works with Congress on all aspects of the educator pipeline, and supports efforts to improve attraction, preparation, and retention of educators, including through efforts to reduce higher education financial burden. 

Read the bill here.