Loan Forgiveness
Programs Available To Social Workers
Federal Programs
Perkins Loan Forgiveness Program
Additional information: Check with your college or
university financial aid office.
Program for social workers working in public or private nonprofit
child or family service agencies providing services to high
risk children and families from low-income communities or social
workers providing early intervention services to infants and
toddlers with disabilities in public or private nonprofit agencies
under IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act). Also
available for teachers, nurses, law enforcement professionals.
Recipients of Federal Perkins Loan funds received after July
22, 1992 can qualify for postponement/ cancellation of up to
100% of the loan. The cancellation takes place over 5 years.
For each year of service completed, the student is entitled
to cancellation of the loan at the following rates: Years 1
and 2 the loan is forgiven at 15% each year, Year 3 and 4 forgiven
at 20% each year, and Year 5 of employment the loan is forgiven
at 30%.
National Health Service Corp - Federal Program
Additional information: http://nhsc.bhpr.hrsa.gov/join_us/lrp.cfm
Fully trained health professionals, including clinical social
workers, who are dedicated to working with the underserved
and have qualifying educational loans are eligible to compete
for repayment of those loans if they choose to serve in a community
of greatest need. In addition to loan repayment, these clinicians
receive a competitive salary, some tax relief benefits, and
a chance to have a significant impact on a community.
National Institutes of Health (NIH) - Loan Forgiveness
for Researchers
Additional information and on-line application: http://www.lrp.nih.gov/
Program is for social workers and other professionals who are
pursuing research careers in the areas of clinical, pediatric,
contraception and infertility, or health disparities. Participants
must possess a doctoral-level degree, devote 50% or more of
their time to research funded by a non-profit organization
or government entity (federal, state, or local), and have educational
loan debt equal to or exceeding 20% of their institutional
base salary.
Other Federal Resources
State Programs
National Health Service Corp - State Loan Repayment
Program
Additional information: http://nhsc.bhpr.hrsa.gov/join_us/slrp.cfm
The State Loan Repayment Program is part of the Health Resources
and Services Administration's (HRSA) Bureau of Health Professions
(BHPr) overall strategy to improve access to underserved communities.
NHSC grants matching funds directly to States to operate their
own loan repayment programs. Primary care health professionals
who are providing full-time clinical services in a public or
non-profit facility located in a federally designated Health
Professional Shortage Area are eligible for this program. Eligibility
requirements and benefits vary from State to State. For specific
information, please contact the States directly.
State Loan Repayment Contacts
If your state is not listed below, it is because they do not
provide state loan repayment for social workers.
Alabama
Cleve E. Money
Alabama Department of Public Health
Office of Primary and Rural Health
RSA Tower, Suite 840, P.O. Box 303017
Montgomery, AL 36130-3017
800-255-1992
334-206-5434 (FAX)
mailto:Cmoney@adph.state.al.us
Arizona
Elizabeth Gagnon
Office of Primary Health Care Resources
Arizona Department of Health Services
1740 W. Adams, Room 302
Phoenix, AZ 85007
602-542-2954
602-542-2011 (FAX)
mailto:egagnon@hs.state.az.us
California
Karen Munsterman
Office of Statewide Health Planning Development
1600 9th Street, Room 440
Sacramento, CA 95814
916-654-2102
916-654-3138 (FAX)
mailto:kmunster@oshpd.state.ca.us
http://www.oshpd.state.ca.us/HWCDD/stateloan/index.htm
Colorado
Daniel A. Navarro
Budget and Program Analyst
Colorado AHEC System
1976 Uvalda Court
Aurora, CO 80010
303-724-0753
303-724-0891 (FAX)
mailto:dan.navarro@uchsc.edu
http://www.uchsc.edu/ahec/lrp/lrp.htm
Connecticut
Martha Okafor
Health Program Associate
Connecticut Department of Public Health
410 Capitol Avenue, MS 11PCR
Hartford, CT 06134-0308
860-509-7882
860-509-7720 (Fax)
mailto:martha.okafor@po.state.ct.us
http://www.dph.state.ct.us/BCH/Family%20Health/SLRP/slrp_home.htm
Delaware
Judith A. Chaconas
Director, Planning and Policy
Delaware Health Care Commission
540 S. DuPont Highway
Dover, Delaware 19901
302-744-1220
302-739-6927(FAX)
mailto:jchaconas@state.de.us
http://www.state.de.us/dhcc
Georgia
Peggy Shull
Executive Director
State Medical Education Board
2 Northside 75, NW, Suite 220
Atlanta, Georgia 30318-7701
404-206-5420
404-206-5424 (FAX)
mailto:pshull@dch.state.ga.us
Illinois
Mary Catherine Ring, Chief
Center for Rural Health
Illinois Department of Public Health
535 W. Jefferson Street, 3rd Floor
Springfield, IL 62761-2547 (FAX)
800-821-3635
217-782-2547 (FAX)
mailto:Mring@idph.state.il.us
Indiana
Janet Chorpenning
Indiana State Department of Health
2 N. Meridian Street, Section 8B-99
Indianapolis, IN 46204
317-233-1385
317-233-7761 (FAX)
mailto:jchorpenning@isdh.state.in.us
Iowa
Patricia Kehoe
Iowa Department of Public Health
Lucas State Office Building, 5th floor SE
Des Moines, IA 50319-0075
515-281-5069
515-242-6384 (FAX)
mailto:pkehoe@idph.state.ia.us
http://www.idph.state.ia.us/hpcdp/primecarre.asp
Kansas
Barbara J. Gibson, Primary Care Services
KDHE Office of Local and Rural Health
Curtis State Office Building
1000 SW Jackson, Suite 340
Topeka KS 66612 -1365
785 296-1200
785 296-1231 (FAX)
mailto:bgibson@kdhe.state.ks.us
http://www.kdhe.state.ks.us/olrh/
Kentucky
Lola Dixon
University of Kentucky Center for Rural Health
100 Airport Gardens Road, #10
Hazard , KY 41701
606-439-3557
606-436-8833 (FAX)
mailto:lmdixon@uky.edu
http://www.mc.uky.edu/RuralHealth/SORH/slrp1.htm
Louisiana
Kristy Nichols, Director
State Office of Rural Health
P. O. Box 2870
Baton Rouge, LA 70821-2870
225-342-3814
225-342-0080 (FAX)
mailto:knichols@dhh.state.la.us
http://www.dhh.louisiana.gov/offices/page.asp?id=88&detail=4986
Currently does not accept social workers, but have requested
in most recent state plan to include social workers. (December
2005)
Maine
Sophie Glidden
Director Primary Health Care, State of Maine
Department of Health and Human Services
35 Anthony Avenue, State House Station #11
Augusta, ME 04333
207-624-5424
207-624-5431 (FAX)
mailto:sophie.e.glidden@state.me.us
http://www.maine.gov/dhhs/bohodr/SLRPSUMM.htm
Massachusetts
Julia Dyck
Department of Public Health
250 Washington Street, 5th Floor
Boston, MA 02108
617-624-6043
617-624-6062 (FAX)
mailto:julia.dyck@state.ma.us
http://www.mass.gov/dph/fch/health_shortage.htm
Michigan
Steven L. Creamer, M.A., State LRP
Michigan Department of Community Health
Policy and Legal Affairs Administration
320 South Walnut Street
Lewis Call Building, 6th Floor
Lansing, MI 48913
517-241-9946
517-241-0084 (FAX)
mailto:CreamerS@michigan.gov
http://www.mimom.org/page.cfm/42/
Minnesota
Debra L. Jahnke, Sr. State Program Administrator
Office of Rural Health and Primary Care
Minnesota Department of Health
121 East 7th Place, Suite 400
St. Paul, MN 55164-0975
651-282-6334 or 800-366-5424
651-297-5808 (FAX)
mailto:debra.jahnke@health.state.mn.us
http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/chs/stateloan.htm
Nevada
Keith Clark
Nevada Office of Rural Health
1500 College Parkway
Elko, NV 89801
775-738-3828
775-738-0689 (FAX)
mailto:clarkk@med.unr.edu
New Hampshire
Bryan Ayars, Bureau Chief
Rural Health & Primary Care
NH Dept. of Health & Human Services
6 Hazen Drive
Concord, NH 03301
603-271-4547
603-271-4506 (FAX)
mailto:Bayars@dhhs.state.nh.us
New Mexico
March Pompei
Primary Care Program Manager
New Mexico Department of Health
1068 Cerrillos Road
Santa Fe, NM 87501-4295
505-476-6513
505-476-6511 (FAX)
mailto:mpompei@che.state.nm.us
Ohio
Geri Rousculp
Ohio Department of Health
Primary Care/Rural Health Program
246 North High Street
Columbus, OH 43215
614-644-8496
614-995-4235 (FAX)
mailto:grouscul@gw.odh.state.oh.us
Limited to LISWs
Oklahoma
James R. Bishop
State of Oklahoma
Physician Manpower Training Commission
1440 NW 63rd Street, Ste. 302
Oklahoma City, OK 73116-6505
405-843-5667
405-843-5792 (FAX)
mailto:jim.bishop@pmtc.state.ok.us
http://www.pmtc.state.ok.us/SLRP.htm
South Dakota
Peggy Stoddard
South Dakota Department of Health
Office of Rural Health
207 East Missouri #1A
Pierre, SD 57501
605-773-2679
604-773-2680 (FAX)
mailto:lori.thompson@state.sd.us
http://www.state.sd.us/doh/rural/index.htm
Texas
Senta Galeazzi
Office of Rural Community Affairs
Rural Communities Health Care Investment Program
P.O. Box 12877
Austin, TX 78711
512-936-6743
512-936-6776 (FAX)
sgaleazzi@orca.state.tx.us
http://www.orca.state.tx.us/healthcare/stipend/healthinvprgm.htm
Utah
Erin Olsen
Support Services Coordinator
Utah Department of Health
Bureau Primary Care, Rural, & Ethnic Health
288 North 1460 West, 4th Floor
P.O. Box 142005
Salt Lake City, UT 84114-2005
801-538-6113
801-538-6387 (FAX)
mailto:Elolsen@doh.state.ut.us
http://health.utah.gov/primarycare/scholarloanmenu.html
Wisconsin
Peggy Burke
Wisconsin Department of Commerce
P. O. Box 7970
Madison , WI 53707
608-266-3751
608-266-8969 (FAX)
mailto:pburke@commerce.state.wi.us
http://commerce.wi.gov/CD/CD-phc-app.html
Additional State Resources
California
Licensed Mental Health Service Provider Education
Program provides scholarships and educational loan repayment
grants to health professional students and recent graduates
who are committed to practicing in rural and urban underserved
areas.
http://www.healthprofessions.ca.gov/
For
more information: Janlee Wong, naswca@naswca.org,
916-442-4565
District of Columbia
Social Worker Loan Repayment Program:
Social workers who hold bachelor's degrees can have $10,000-$13,000
in loans forgiven and those with master's degrees can have
$15,000 to $18,000 forgiven if they stay four years.
For more
information: Norma Hatot, Director of Recruitment, DC Child
and Family Services Agency, 202-724-7387
Florida
Child Welfare Loan Forgiveness Program is designed
to provide loan assistance to eligible students for upper-division
undergraduate and graduate study. The primary purpose of the
program is to attract capable and promising students to the
child welfare profession, increase employment and retention
of individuals who are working towards or who have received
either a bachelor's degree or a master's degree in social work,
or any human services subject area that qualifies the individual
for employment as a family services worker, and provide opportunities
for persons making mid-career decisions to enter the child
welfare profession.
For more information: Jim Aiken, naswfl@naswfl.org,
850-224-2400
Illinois
Child Welfare Student Loan Forgiveness Program provides loan
assistance, subject to appropriation, to eligible students
for upper-division undergraduate and graduate study in social
work or human services. It permits forgivable loans to be awarded
for a maximum of two (2) academic years and requires a loan
recipient to work in child welfare at the Department of Children
and Family Services, its successor, or a contracting agency
for at least the number of years for which the loan is received.
Sets maximum amounts of $4,000 for loans awarded at the undergraduate
level and $8,000 for loans awarded at the graduate level. Contains
provisions concerning eligibility, repayment, credit, and a
penalty for non-compliance.
For more information: Joel Rubin, jlrubin@naswil.org,
312-236-8308
New York
The loan forgiveness program is designed to attract social
workers to employment in shortage areas, including health,
mental health, aging, child welfare, and HIV/AIDS. “Multi-lingual” communities
also are identified as shortage areas. To be eligible, a social
worker with a LMSW or LCSW must have already worked for the
last 12 months in one of the critical shortage areas. Loan
amounts of $6,500 can be forgiven in each year the graduate
is employed in a shortage area, up to $26,000 over four years.
The program is expected to fund loan repayment for approximately
160 social workers.
http://www.naswnyc.org/LoanForgivenessUpdate.htm
More
information: Bob Schachter, NASW-NYC Chapter, mailto:schachter@naswnyc.org
New Jersey
The program is designed to provide loan redemption for state
residents who have earned a bachelor’s or master’s
degree within a one-year period prior to being hired as a fulltime “direct
care professional at a qualified facility.” Eligibility
includes degrees in a human services discipline, such as social
work, psychology, counseling, or in a health-related profession,
such as occupational, physical, or speech therapy. Loan redemption
is not to exceed $5,000 per year or $20,000 over four years.
Qualified facilities may include state, local, or nonprofit
agencies or organizations that provide services under state
contract.
http://www.naswnj.org/ADVOCACY/Loan_Forgiveness_passed_2005.htm
http://www.hesaa.org/aid_professionals2/whats_new/specific.asp?wn_id=93
More information: Walter Kalman, NASW-NJ Chapter, mailto:naswnj@aol.com
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