Illinois Teachers and Child Care Providers Loan Repayment Program

Program Description

The Illinois Teachers and Child Care Providers Loan Repayment Program encourages academically talented Illinois students to enter into and continue teaching in Illinois schools in low-income areas and to enter the early child care profession and serve low-income areas in Illinois. If the teaching/service obligation is met by a Federal Stafford loan borrower who has qualified for the federal government’s loan forgiveness programs, Illinois may provide an additional matching award of up to $5,000 to the qualifying applicant to repay their student loan debt. 

The federal government loan forgiveness programs include Federal Stafford Loan Cancellation for Teachers Program and the Federal Child Care Provider Loan Forgiveness Program.

Eligibility Requirements

In order to qualify for the Illinois Teachers and Child Care Providers Loan Repayment Program, an applicant must be:

• a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen; 
• a resident of Illinois; 
• a borrower who has had an amount of his or her educational loans forgiven under the federal government’s loan forgiveness programs; and 
• a borrower who has fulfilled a five-year teaching obligation in an Illinois elementary or secondary school designated as a low-income school or have worked full time for 2 consecutive years in a child card facility that serves a low-income area in Illinois. 

Application Procedures

All applicants must submit an Illinois Teacher Loan Repayment Application or an Illinois Child Care Provider Loan Repayment Application, including the required documentation, to ISAC’s Deerfield office as indicated on the application within six months of receiving loan forgiveness from the federal government.

The borrower must reapply each year that he or she receives a portion of his or her loans forgiven under the federal government’s loan forgiveness programs, (20 U.S.C 1078-10, Section 428J or 428K of the HEA) but no more than a total of $5,000 may be awarded to an individual borrower.

* The federal Child Care Provider Loan Forgiveness Program is a demonstration program for which no funding has been provided. Consequently, the federal government is not accepting new applicants. Further details are provided within the "Child Care Provider Loan Forgiveness Program" section of the Discharge/Cancellation page at Student Aid on the Web.
 
Payment

Loan repayment will be made to the borrower based upon the lesser of the amount forgiven under the federal government’s loan forgiveness programs, (20 U.S.C 1078-10, Section 428J or 428K of the HEA) or $5,000. Proceeds of the grant will be sent directly to the holder of the loans to be repaid. 

The total number of grants awarded in a given fiscal year is contingent upon available funding. If funding is insufficient to pay all eligible applicants, awarding will be based on the date the complete application, with all required documentation, is received at ISAC.

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