Teaching in a Low Income School

For low-income cancellations you must:

  • satisfy the criteria for teaching
  • work at a school designated by the government as low income

Criteria for the Low-Income Designation

Low-income communities are defined as communities in which there is a high concentration of children eligible to be counted under Title 1 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended.

A school serving such a community receives the low-income designation, on a yearly basis. However, not all schools serving low-income communities are selected. The final determination is made by the United States Secretary of Education, who consults with each state's Department of Education.

An official directory of designated low-income schools is published annually by the Secretary of Education. If you feel that you qualify for cancellation because you teach at a school with students from low income families, you may verify that your school is in the Federal Register of Low Income Schools at the government's Teacher Cancellation site.

NOTE: All elementary and secondary schools operated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) qualify as schools serving low-income students. Elementary and secondary schools operated on reservations by Indian tribal groups under contract with the BIA also qualify.

Cancellation if School is Removed from List

If a borrower is teaching at a school that is on the list one year but not in subsequent years, the borrower may continue to teach in that school and remain eligible to receive a cancellation for service in that school.

Information about specific schools listed in the directory may be obtained from

Patricia Reese
Systems Administration Branch
Campus-Based Programs Systems Division
Office of Postsecondary Education
U.S. Department of Education
600 Independence Avenue, SW, (ROB-3, Room 4621)
Washington, DC 20202-5447

Criteria for Teaching

A teacher is a person who provides to students either

  • direct classroom teaching or
  • classroom-type teaching in a non-classroom setting or
  • educational services directly related to classroom teaching
    (e.g. librarian; guidance counselor).

In addition, the borrower must be:

  • teaching full time
  • in a public or other nonprofit elementary or secondary school system
  • directly employed by the school system.

Positions with Special Requirements

The following positions qualify for cancellation only if the borrower provides direct and personal educational services to students:

  • supervisor
  • administrator
  • researcher
  • curriculum specialist

The following positions qualify only if

  • the borrower is licensed, certified, or registered by the appropriate state education agency for that area in which he or she is providing related special educational services
  • the services provided by the borrower are part of the educational curriculum for handicapped children:
    • speech and language pathology and audiology
    • physical therapy
    • occupational therapy
    • psychological and counseling services
    • recreational therapy

The following programs qualify only if the STATE considers them to be part of its elementary education program:

  • pre-school
  • pre-kindergarten
  • kindergarten

Teaching in Multiple Locations

A borrower who is simultaneously teaching part time in two or more schools may request a cancellation if an official at one of the schools certifies that the borrower taught full time for a full academic year.

In addition, all of the schools must be listed in the directory of designated low-income schools.

For example:

  • under a consortium agreement, a borrower may be employed by the consortium and teach at member schools.
  • two or more schools, by mutual agreement, could arrange to have one school employ the borrower on a full-time basis and then hire out his or her services to the other school(s) involved in the agreement.
  • a borrower can be considered to have been a full-time teacher for an academic year if he or she can obtain appropriate certifications that he or she has taught in two half-time teaching positions for a complete academic year in two elementary or secondary schools or in two secondary schools.

If it cannot easily be determined that the borrower taught full time, then the borrower's cancellation request must be denied.

Incomplete Academic Year

Borrowers who cannot complete the academic year because of illness or pregnancy may still qualify for cancellation if they:

  • have completed the first half of the academic year
  • have begun teaching the second half of the academic year
  • are deemed by their employer to have fulfilled the year's contract.

Rate of Cancellation

Any interest that may have accrued during the year of eligible employment will be canceled. In addition, the following percentages of the original principal loan amount will be canceled.

Years of Cancellation Rate of Cancellation
First year 15%
Second year 15%
Third year 20%
Fourth year 20%
Fifth year 30%

Forms

Return to Cancellation Page