Tufts University to Help Graduates in Public-Service Repay Student Loans

Under a new student loan repayment program offered by Tufts University, graduates and undergraduates from the school who pursue jobs in public service could have a portion of their student loans forgiven.

Tufts alumni from any graduating class who choose or have chosen to work for a nonprofit or public-sector employer following graduation may be eligible for the program, according to an article by The Chronicle of Higher Education writer Elizabeth Farrell (“Tufts Offers Loan Relief to Public-Service-Minded Students and Alumni,” April 23, 2008).

Tufts officials tout the university-wide program as the nation’s first debt relief plan to include all students who graduate from a particular school, Farrell wrote.

The total loan-repayment-assistance award a Tufts graduate could receive through the program is dependent on the graduate’s income level and the remaining balance of his or her student loan debt.

University officials expect to grant the school’s first loan-forgiveness awards in December. Initial funding for the program includes a $100 million gift from Tufts graduate, and eBay founder, Pierre Omidyar and $500,000 from the Omidyar-Tufts Microfinance Fund.

 

Rockefeller Gives $100 Million to Harvard

Recently, Harvard University alumnus David Rockefeller, announced that he will be giving his alma mater the single largest gift from a former student ever, writes Stephanie Strom of The New York Times, (“Rockefeller Gives Harvard $100 Million,” April 25, 2008).

The $100 million gift will be added to the school’s $35 million endowment, the largest among all universities.

Roughly $70 million of the award will help fund the school’s undergraduate international study programs, which have more than doubled in participants over the last four years, and, according to a university survey, have been financially inaccessible for many more Harvard students.

The remainder of the gift will be earmarked for the expansion of the school’s arts education programs.

In a telephone interview with The Times, Rockefeller commented that Harvard played an important role in his life and that the school’s study abroad program helped inspire his passion for studying art. In the summer of 1936, Rockefeller took his first art courses in Germany, where he chose to study to fulfill his foreign language requirement, Strom writes.

Although Harvard will not receive Rockefeller’s $100 million gift until after his death, he has agreed to give the school $2.5 million annually, resulting in the school receiving more than the promised $100 million.

by Student Loan

 

Federal Pell Grant

A Federal Pell Grant, unlike a loan, does not have to be repaid. Pell Grants are awarded usually only to undergraduate students who have not earned a bachelor’s or a professional degree. Pell Grants are considered a foundation of federal financial aid, to which aid from other federal and nonfederal sources might be added.

How much can I get?
The maximum Pell Grant award for the 2007-08 award year (July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008) is $4,310. The maximum award for the 2008-09 award year (July 1, 2008 to June 30, 2009) is $4,731. The maximum can change each award year and depends on program funding. The amount you get, though, will depend not only on your financial need, but also on your costs to attend school, your status as a full-time or part-time student, and your plans to attend school for a full academic year or less.

If I am eligible, how will I get the Pell Grant money?
Your school can apply Pell Grant funds to your school costs, pay you directly (usually by check), or combine these methods. The school must tell you in writing how much your award will be and how and when you’ll be paid. Schools must disburse funds at least once per term (semester, trimester, or quarter). Schools that do not use semesters, trimesters, or quarters must disburse funds at least twice per academic year.

Source: studentaid.ed.gov