Higher Education

Higher Education Act

student loans

college affordability

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

Going to college shouldn’t mean going into debt

We support making higher education more affordable and accessible.

In the 2016-17 school year, states invested $9 billion less in public colleges and universities than they did in 2008.

Students and families—not public dollars—now fund the bulk of core higher education costs.

Any reauthorization of the Higher Education Act must address making postsecondary education affordable and accessible to all.

The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program is an investment in our nation’s values of public service and community involvement.

NEA supports creating a pathway to a postsecondary degree by eliminating community college tuition.

Institutions need incentives to invest in a predominantly full-time, tenure-track faculty and improve working conditions for adjunct or “contingent” faculty.

Broad-based college debt cancellation would stimulate the economy, promote racial justice, and help Americans out of the pandemic’s economic depression.

Take Action!

Support strong public schools by taking these actions today.

Cancel the student loan debt of public sector workers with 10 years of service

Created in 2007, the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program was designed to encourage college graduates to pursue careers in education, health care, firefighting, and other forms of public service. The program promised to wipe away federal student debt after 120 qualifying monthly payments—10 years’ worth of payments. Instead, under the failed leadership of the previous administration, the Department of Education rejected 98 percent of the PSLF applications filed since 2017, when the first public sector workers became eligible for relief.

Email Education Secretary Cardona and tell him to provide relief NOW.