The Executive Board of the Society of Southwest Archivists encourages archival employees with federal student loans to review their eligibility under the U.S. Department of Education’s Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) and Temporary Expanded PSLF (TEPSLF) programs. If you were previously denied under PSLF rules, the limited one-year waiver under TEPSLF put in place by the Education Department may now qualify you for forgiveness. The deadline to submit necessary paperwork is October 31, 2022.

Under the PSLF program, federal student loan borrowers employed by government agencies and qualifying nonprofit organizations are eligible to have their federal student loan balance forgiven after making 10 years of qualifying loan payments. Many archival workers meet the employer eligibility criteria for the program.

To determine your eligibility for either program, visit https://studentaid.gov/pslf. You must apply to be considered.

In an era of staggering student loan debt, surging inflation, and stagnant wages, there should be no shame in seeking financial relief. To assist in determining what options may be available to you, the following non-profit organizations provide additional information:

PSLF Coalition https://pslfcoalition.org

Student Borrower Protection Center https://protectborrowers.org

Student Loan Borrower Assistance https://www.studentloanborrowerassistance.org

Please be aware of the numerous scams regarding student loan forgiveness and consolidation. These individuals and companies seek to defraud unsuspecting borrowers through “official” looking advertisements and websites. Avoid any entity that uses high-pressure sales tactics, promises fast debt cancellation, requires upfront fees, and that limits your options when engaging their services.