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Sat Jan 12, 2008
DALLAS — Some Dallas schoolteachers say they feel misled and let down, and they're not holding back.
It all has to do with the way the state lures some teachers to work in poor school districts.
Third grade teacher Kellie Griggs is drowning in debt. "If I didn't have student loans, I wouldn't have to color my hair," she said. "Let's put it this way: I am in debt $20,000 more than I make in a year"
Griggs works at Arcadia Park Elementary School in Oak Cliff.
"I love my job; I love my students. I would take a bullet for any of them," she said.
But Griggs feels misled about a law that says teachers who work in poor school districts will get help paying off their student loans.
The Teach for Texas Loan Repayment Assistance Program provides teachers with a maximum of $5,000 a year, "which is nothing to sneeze at for a teacher," Griggs said.
But she doesn't even get that amount, because she started teaching before the program started.
Teacher Kevin Cooper says he has almost $80,000 in student loans.
"I'm up a creek," Griggs said. Fellow educator Kevin Cooper is in the same boat.
"I heard if you taught in a critical need area, you could get some assistance with student loans," Cooper said—an assertion that proved to be false.
Cooper, who said he has nearly $80,000 in student loans, also started teaching before the assistance program took effect.
All the while, the interest on those student loans is accruing, and the teachers say they need more help.
"We share the concerns of some that the student loan forgiveness process is apparently difficult," said Jon Dahlander, a spokesman for the Dallas Independent School District. "This situation needs to be resolved and resolved quickly."
State administrators who oversee the financial aid program told News 8 that helping teachers is a priority. They will report to the legislature that teacher demand for loan repayment has far exceeded available funding.
"I work very hard, which every teacher does," Griggs said. "No one thinks we're going to get rich teaching—no one does—but it would be nice to get some help."
Cooper is pragmatic about the issue. "There's no such thing as debtor's prison," he said. "Eventually, I'll get it paid or die; it's not going to hurt me that bad."
Both teachers agree, however, that their students are worth all the money in the world.
Source:
http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/tv/stories
/wfaa080111_wz_teacherloans.10d55ad0.html
YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON A MORTGAGE OR ANY OTHER DEBT SECURED ON IT.