Loan Forgiveness: Workforce Stories

Your stories on why loan forgiveness is needed:

I am currently a Director at an Early Childhood Center in the capital region and hold a Bachelor's degree in Special Education. I started out in the Early childhood field as a Head Teacher in a Four year old classroom, then worked my way up to an Assistant Director, and then a Director.

Before I entered the Early Childhood field I was a Special Education teacher for emotionally disturbed teenage boys. I loved my job but decided to take a break from this area of education and try another area in the field of education. I have been in the field of Early Childhood for the past four years now. I love the field but right away from being in Special Education and going to the field of Early Childhood I noticed a huge pay cut. I noticed it was harder to pay back some of my student loans and bills that I had in general.

As a Director I find it hard to hire and retain quality staff. I feel this is due to the fact that the pay is low in the field and they can not afford to go to school and work in the field and support themselves and their families. More than half of my staff are enrolled in school to further their education as well as to meet the NYS standards to become a teacher in NYS, and to better their lives. More than half of my staff have a hard time paying their bills. More than half of my staff have to work more than one job to help support themselves and their families.

I also have staff that would like to go back to school but can not afford to do so. My staff love their job, but some come and go due to the fact of not being able to afford things.

I feel the loan forgiveness program would be a huge help to the field of Early Childhood Education. I feel that the teacher's in the field of Early Childhood should receive the same respect that teacher's do in the public school system. The teacher's in the Early Childhood field work longer hours and are the ones who make the first years of children's learning the most important years, and yet they get paid a great deal less and have less incentives. I feel that the loan forgiveness program will help retain staff and give them incentives to help them stay in the field and feel good about what they are doing.

I really hope the loan forgiveness program gets passed!

D. Majkut, center director, Schenectady, NY

I have been working in a childcare center for a little over 10 years. I attended college and received a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education. I had all intentions of finding a job and then starting on my Master's Degree. I began working in a childcare center in 1997 with a Bachelor's Degree making $7.00 per hour. I started out working with the children who attended a half day kindergarten program. The children spent the other half of their day at the childcare center while their parent's worked.

I enjoyed working with the children and found it very rewarding. I left college with over $20,000 in student loans and I had no choice but to defer them since my pay was only $7.00 per hour. I kept my loans deferred for the maximum length of time allowed before I had to start paying back my loans. I was unable to afford the monthly payments which were over $300.00 per month so I had to make arrangements to have a 20 year repayment plan which would bring my payments down to an affordable rate.

I worked in the classroom for several years and then advanced to the office as the assistant director. The position paid $9.00 per hour. I still felt very dedicated to the job even though the pay was very low. Working with the children and families daily is very rewarding and I couldn't imagine doing any other job. I have thought about looking for a job in a higher paying field but it just wouldn't be as fulfilling as the work I do now.

I am currently the director of the same center that I started at 10 years ago and I am still paying off my student loans. Being in the director position I am now facing the struggle of hiring qualified staff who can work for low pay. This is very difficult as you can imagine. The lead teachers are required to have education in the field but then need to work for very low pay, which makes it very difficult if not impossible to pay back any educational loans.

Loan forgiveness would help to alleviate the stress of having to pay off high student loans and to help the employees to further their education without having to worry about paying back student loans when working for a lower income. This field is very important to our future and having dedicated, loving, and educated employees is very important.

A. Aldrich, center director, Malta, NY

My story begins when I started in the Early Childhood Education field over 20 years ago. I started out as a teacher assistant, then progressed to teacher, third in charge, assistant director and now I am a director at a childcare center.

Throughout the years, I have seen a decline in young women (men) going in the field of early childhood. We have had quite a few dedicated staff that really put their all into their classroom and their children over the years and wanted to further their education, and due to the salary they were making,
had to leave the field. Some of the young women were single mothers, who might have one child or more, and to be able to afford an apartment, raise their child and buy food, and further their education is almost impossible when you are making $8.00 - $10.00 an hour.

When you enter the early childhood field, you are so excited. You can't wait to work with the children and help them grow and to take steps to learn life experiences! We work with Infants starting at 6 weeks to School Age up to 12 years of age. In our society today, two parents have to work in order to meet their needs, or have what they want in life; therefore, their children have to attend some type of childcare program. We strive really hard to have enrollment up at our center. However, when due to salary, or teachers not being able to go to school to better their education because they cannot afford it, they have to leave and we have to start looking for new staff. In New York State, we have ratios that have to be met. Consistency for children is very important also. We are their home away from home and we are one of their consistent parts of life.

The teachers in public schools get paid well and can continue their education, whether it be a Master's Degree or something else in their field, and sometimes receive assistance from their school district. We, in the Early Childhood field are basically helping families raise their children and preparing them for their future endeavors in Kindergarten on up.

My wish is for Legislature to start to recognize this and help our young women (men) who go into this field. After all, we are working with the children of the future, and we need to help the staff that are working with them to better themselves and help them live a better life, so that they will stay working with us at our centers.

If you make higher education more affordable, it will make it easier for us to recruit and hire more educated professionals, who could stay in the field. I feel that this would really benefit our program and teachers.

K. Demczar, childcare director, Schenectady, NY

When my own children went off to college, I decided to change careers. I spent a good portion of my student teaching working as an assistant teacher in a Head Start Toddler class, and realized tremendous personal satisfaction working with families at risk. The pay was $9.00 an hour, hardly enough to support my family, so I decided to complete my graduate work in early childhood and special education.

The upside of that decision is that I now work as a Home Visitor for
Early Head Start, working with parents and young children. Studies have shown that the earlier families at risk are offered comprehensive services such as a Home Visiting program or even a center based infant and toddler program, the greater the chance for future success intellectually, physically and socially.

The downside of that decision is that my salary is now approximately $15.00 per hour. This is more than a teaching assistant, but hardly enough to support my family, let alone pay back educational loans totaling over $40,000. I have watched as a number of staff leave Head Start programs once they have received their state certification. They leave not because they do not believe in the mission of Head Start, rather they cannot afford to support that mission financially. The bottom line, public schools pay better. I have also noticed that the staff that remains is usually well intended, poorly educated (compared to public school teachers), and many are trapped in the cycle of poverty themselves, the issues of which are sometimes brought into the classroom.

I find myself asking if Head Start is really as effective as it was designed to be without seriously improving the educational standards of Administration and Staff. As much as I believe in the mission and philosophy of Head Start at times I too consider working elsewhere. However, a LOAN FORGIVENESS program would allow me and, I am sure others like myself who are dedicated to changing the cycle of poverty, to continue working at Head Start and continue the important work of educating the whole child and the community in which they live.

It is my belief that equal pay and loan forgiveness for those working with families at risk are worth the investment not only for the child, but for society as a whole.

G. Joyce, early care and education professional

My story concerns not only myself, I am writting about my colleagues as well.

I began working with young children in 1986. Together with teachers and staff I am a day care center director for a non profit organization that I have been part of for the past 10 years.

The salaries our organization is able to pay are below average for the early childhood sector. There are staff with children and families who fall just above the guidelines for Child Health/Family Health Plus, have no health insurance and are having trouble making ends meet. Many staff mention other places of employment where they could receive a higher wage, however, they do not wish to leave the students behind.

We all struggle financially and many take on a part time job to supplement their income. This story is sad but true for many Childhood Center providers in New York State.

It is rewarding to take care of the needs of children and to encourage each student's social, emotional, physical and academic growth. However, after dedicating many years to caring for children in early childhood, I have continued my education and have loans totalling over $67,000. I am deferring my loans currently in the hope that eventually I would have a greater income to make continual monthly payments.

I am looking for loan forgiveness so that I will be able to continue working in the early childhood field, and, for others who have struggled and worked hard to develop their education and give back through their work each day. Your consideration is greeatly appreciated.

Janeen A., day care director, Buffalo, NY

As a mother of three I decided to go back to school to get my education degree. I graduated 3 years ago with a Master's degree in special education and an undergrad degree in Elementary Ed. I began working in a small private school teaching kindergarten and prek. Because I could not live on the wages they were offering, I took a job as a director of a childcare center. I financed all of my schooling with loans and now owe approximately $60,000. Even with my new job it is very difficult to make my payments each month. I have to work a second job as a waitress to pay my bills.

As a childcare director I have also seen the problems related to hiring and retaining qualified staff. I currently have staff who would love to further their education, but cannot due to the expense. These people have the huge responsibility of caring for and educating our young, but are paid minimum wage, offered no health insurance, and are not guaranteed hours due to the nature of this business.

I believe that loan forgiveness is a must if we are to improve the quality of care we provide to these children.

Christine B., childcare director, Sanborn, NY

I have been a Pre-K teacher for over 28 years, long before a Bachelor's Degree was ever even thought of, or needed. I have recently gone back to school, and received my Bachelor's in Early Childhood Education, graduating Cum Laude,and my NYS Teaching Certification Birth-Grade 2. I wanted to go back to school for many reasons, one of which is that I think our very youngest students deserve the very best, which includes highly
competent, caring teachers. Unfortunately, I have also incurred a substantial amount of debt to pay for my degree, debt that I will have difficulty paying off because of the low salaries most Pre-K teachers receive.

Many Universal Pre-K teachers work for other agencies and Early Childhood programs that collaborate with elementary schools to put Universal Pre-K classrooms in place, and while they have to have the same credentials as all NYS teachers, their pay is only about half of what the rest of the teachers in the building make. Certified Pre-K teachers who have their Bachelor's and work in day-care centers also have the same problem, they have a degree that they should be reimbursed for on a par with other certified teachers, but are not. It is sad as many of us are wondering how we can afford to pay off our loans on the low salaries we receive as NYS certified teachers; some of us may have to leave the profession we love as we can no longer afford to teach and be able to make our loan payments.

Loan forgiveness would greatly help to alleviate this problem; it would enable collaborating agency or day-care center teachers who do not make what the rest of NYS teachers make to maintain a decent standard of living. It would help schools and collaborating agencies to retain caring, qualified staff so there is not a constant turn-over as teachers leave to find better jobs so they can make their loans payments, and finally,it would also encourage all Pre-K teachers to obtain their Bachelor's Degree and NYS Certification, which benefits all of our youngest students, and society as a whole.

Lisa M., Pre-K teacher, Voorheesville, NY

I am a Universal Pre-Kindergarten teacher. I have a Master's Degree in Elementary Education as required by New York State. I have $55,000 in education loans which will reach approximately $85,000 by the time I can pay it off.

I love my job. I teach needy children and see them prosper! I have seen the huge difference that UPK makes in preparing young children to enter the public school system! My children are ready and prepared to sit and listen patiently, voice their opinion and involve themselves in discussions, and be excited about reading and writing! This is a huge bonus for the Kindergarten teachers who recieve my students. It is easy to look around a Kindergarten classroom and know which children have been through the UPK program!

With the meager wages that I make teaching UPK at a not-for-profit agency it is nearly impossible for me to consider making this rewarding experience a career. New York State needs to create worthwhile incentives to keep excellent teachers in these classrooms! UPK teachers do not even get to claim the educators allowance on our NYS taxes!

Please create a loan forgiveness bill that would decrease the burden of my education loans and make it easier for me to concentrate on teaching my students. Thank you for your time.

Shawn K., UPK teacher, Caledonia, NY

My story begins in 2nd grade when I decided that I wanted to become a teacher.  Ever since then, I have been working toward that goal, but there have been a few bumps along the road. I started my college education at SUNY Cobleskill with the understanding that, upon my two year graduation, my credits would then transfer to SUNY Oneonta with no problems. This,
however, changed when I was already close to graduating.  I still decided to transfer to Oneonta because of the high quality program they are known for. This has added two years onto my education.  When I started college, I was ahead because of credits I had from high school.  The extra time has also cost extra money.  I am going into my sixth year of school and though I am determined and know I will finish, loan forgiveness would greatly be appreciated.  I have worked very hard to do as well as I have in school, and I feel that the extra time that I have put in is a good reason to consider loan forgiveness.

Carey W., student, Oneonta, NY

I have a Bachelor degree in Behavioral Science. I am currently employed and have been since 1998 at a non-profit agency on Long Island, N.Y. I work with children/adolescents with emotional/behavioral disturbances. I am committed to my work and loyal to this agency. However, it is very hard to maintain a decent living in NY State with our salaries. Most of us are forced to have a second job to get by and keep our homes. I want to go back to school and get my Masters in Education to work in a High needs School. However, I am struggling just to pay my undergrad education.

My argument about why the loan forgiveness is needed is that we need well qualified individuals to work with our children and at the same time enjoy their work, without worries of living costs. Unfortunately, this country does very little to push and provide better and affordable ways for higher education. When that should be on top on the list. We as a Nation are looking dumber and dumber to other countries.

The cost of education is so great and the compensation for working with young children is very little that many other potential educators and direct care counselors will not continue this career path simply because they cannot afford to educate themselves and receive wages that will not cover the cost of their education. Please help to support this need by granting
loan forgiveness to those who work with children in need. Our children need us.

Karina, special ed. workforce, Suffolk County, NY

I am 39 years old and have been working with young children since 1988. I have my associate degree in early childhood ed and am currently attending Daemen college, a private 4 yr. institution for my early childhood/special ed degree. I believe I have borrowed in private and federal loans over $50,000 to pursue this advanced degree which I may use in a day care center paying $20,000.  My job is about social, emotional and interpersonal skills with
the children and staff.  Loan forgiveness would let me advance my education and still be a part of young children's lives. Thank you.

Maryann C., early childhood educator, Buffalo, NY

This letter is two fold. I am writing this letter on behalf of myself and my teachers.

I am an Executive Director for a childcare center and I have been in this field for over 15 years.

Time and time again I have witnessed my teachers not being able to continue their education because they can not afford the tuition or have already have outstanding loans they are paying for undergraduate work and do not pursue their graduate studies because they do not want to take out another loan. Early childcare teachers are not paid a substantial amount of money and we provide a minimum tuition reimbursement program but it
does not cover the cost of one class in most instances.

Currently, I am having the same difficulties as my teachers. I am trying to finish my Masters degree which means I will have to take out about another $36,000 in loans. If this forgiveness program is passed, I can at least finish off my Masters degree in the next year and half.

Karla G., child care center director, Pelham. NY

Most professionals serving children from birth to 5 years old are underpaid with few affordable benefits and have few to no options to seek higher education/skills due to lack of financial resources/incentives, access to higher education facilities, childcare expenses, other expenses (books/fuel). Many of the individuals I know who work in the early childhood field work two jobs out of necessity. It took me 11 years to receive my degree and teacher certification (birth - grade 2) with a mixture of my own funding and grants/scholarships from NYS and my employer. Both of these sources are reduced now and I know many of my colleagues now do not have these options open to them. Many of my colleagues have given up on obtaining degrees or have taken out student loans that are impossible to pay back on the salary that is typically paid in the Early Childhood Field. I would not have been able to get my degree without financial assistance. I am now considering starting an advanced degree; a Loan forgiveness program would be of tremendous help to my colleagues and me. I have worked in the
early childhood field for over 19 years and am disheartened by the level of compensation in this field and have at times considered changing careers; but I'm still here advocating that we need to support our children's learning and growing by having quality teachers in early childhood programs who are supported by educational opportunities, quality pay and benefits. Thank
you.

Gail W., early chidhood educator, Waverly, NY

For the past 11 years, my husband and I have been business partners owning and operatng two childcare learning centers in Suffolk County Long Island. We have been inducted into the SUNY Small Business Development
Center (SBDC) Hall of Fame for our best business practices. We employ at our peak performance 80 employees with a license capacity of 350 children.

Beside the positive growth results of the children, we have mentored many young adults while attending college during their employment with us. It is indeed bittersweet when we must wish them well as they leave our employment not only to advance in their teaching careers but to move out of state where it is more affordable to meet their financial obligations including student loans. The loan forgiveness legislation is a DREAM COME TRUE.
Let's make it happen!!!!!!!!

Kathy L., childcare learning operator, Medford, NY

I am a registered provider in Camillus, NY. I have run a family daycare from my home for 7 years. I have an associates degrees and I am looking to get a bachelor degree in Early Childhood Education to continue to improve and educate myself about children and their development.

My situation is this. I was attending a program at OCC in collaboration
with the local Child Care solutions which allowed me to receive college credit toward an bachelor degree while still continuing to run my daycare.

My husband was involved in a serious snowmobile accident in January of this year. He was critically injured and spent 3 months in the hospital and is now disabled.

Since the accident. I have not been able to return to school for the mere fact that since my husband is disabled I need to care for our 7 year old son and try and take care of the day to day activities of our home.

My husband has not returned to work due to his injuries and it is not known if he will. My husband is receiveing disability for his injuries. The disability will be ending shortly and we are not even sure if he will qualify for Social Security disability that we applied for.

I have put my education on hold for my husband and my son so that I can help keep our heads financially above ground.

If a loan forgiveness program were to be implemented I could fulfill my education dream and not have to worry about the money being paid back. I think this would be a welcome to providers like myself who give each and every day to others children with little or no recognition. This would create in my mind a moral boost that we all so desperately would welcome. Thank you for your time.

Barbara G., family daycare provider, Camillus, NY

I currently teach early childhood education at HVCC. While in the beginning of the year many students are intending to seek employment in the field of early childhood education, they change their mind as they prepare to graduate. Why? They are making more money in their part time jobs than
they would in the field of early childhood. A loan forgiveness program would give them the incentive to take a job for less to save money on their loans. Hopefully, once they start they will earn pay raises or find employment at better paying child care programs.

Head Start is now required to hire teachers with a bachelors degree. The teachers they hire don't stay around long once a job in a public school is offered. A loan forgiveness program might encourage them to stay an additional year or two, giving the programs a chance to build their staff's knowledge base. When you have a high staff turn-over the program is always stuck in the mode of training new teachers. It cannot put the energy into developing the quality of program by furthering staff training.

Having worked for a Head Start program, I have known many single parents who have the ability to be a teacher of young children. Their obstacle has been getting their degree. They want to better their career, and make more money for their family, but cannot afford to go to college. The issue with student loans is paying them back. I would like to see something that will help these women get their college degree so they can take on a
leadership role in early childhood education.

I cannot imagine considering giving elementary teachers who will be paid at least $30,000 a year a loan forgiveness program and not consider doing the same for those who work with young children and will make significantly less. These children deserve quality teachers also. With the current recognition of the importance of early childhood development, don't we want to invest in quality early care?

I hope you will consider these issues and pass the loan forgiveness bill.

Diana P., community college educator, Troy, NY

I am the Director of an early childcare center in a school district. The center monitors the attendance of the teen moms in school while exposing their children to age appropriate activities. The resposibility of this daycare as many others can only deliver quality when the caregivers are knowledgeable in the early childcare field. The children who are recipients of quality care are equipped with the skills that they need to have a productive start in their future. How can any business produce quality when the personel that they have are not quality? When daycare centers cheat the children of quality care the children will have problems in the future. The investment that we make
now will benefit the future.

Rachel A., childcare center director, Campbell Hall, NY

I have been in the Early Education field for over 22 years now. While working in the field I have financially been raising my son independently, as well as working part time on my education goals that my employer has requested me to do. I was able to finish my AS in Human Service/Early Education in 2003, and now I am enrolled full time in Keuka College's ASAP Program. Due to my financial situation, I am fortunate to receive some grants toward
my eduation, but I also needed to take out a Stanford loan. My estimated loan amount, when I finish in December of 2008, will be around $16,000 to $20,000. The problem I will have will be paying back that loan, while paying for my son's college tuition, for he will begin college in the fall of 2008. I would love to stay working in the field after I am finished, however if the loan forgiveness bill is not passed, I will be forced into leaving the Early Education field. The children are the future, and without qualified people working in the field, our children will not get qualified care. I hope the NYS Legislature passes the bill for loan forgiveness.

Mary Beth K., early education workforce, Syracuse, NY

I am a director at a non-profit child care center. I have worked in this field for over ten years and love the work I do. I consider myself lucky that I am able to do this. When I graduated high school I lived with my parents and worked my way through community college to earn my associate degree in early childhood education. I spent years paying off my student loans to a community college because this field isn't able to pay the employees a deserved wage. Eventually I moved up in the career ladder and became a director, through the help of EIP funds I received the program administrators credential in order to continue to hold my position. As this field grows, the demands for more education is heard yet my yearly earnings do not allow me to continue my education. I would not be able to pay a student loan and all other bills to support myself. I am a single person who is struggling to make rent, car payments, insurance payments and so on. The thought of another large payment is terrifying and unrealistic. I worry about having a savings, what if I have an accident and how I will save for a retirement! The goverment must do something and do something now. If you want higher education and more qualified teachers to improve the quality of child care then the help to receive the education must be there as well as a way to increase wages.

Kelly K., child care center director, Liverpool, NY

I am currently working as a Site Manager (in other words a supervisor) of 4 Early Childhood classrooms. Over the past 12 years I have held a variety of positions including: Substitute, Teacher Assistant, Teacher, Program Director, and Owner Director. During this time I have slowly continued to work on my education, completing bachelors and masters courses whenever I could afford to or when access to a scholarship was awarded to
me. I have never during all of this time managed to afford to pay for courses that I currently need to complete and to continue paying off my student loans, in fact it is difficult for me on a regular basis to keep a sound budget which includes the amount I currently owe on Student loans from when I did
attend college full time.

I am not the type of person that wants a hand out or a free pass, but our society has not yet come to recognize the financial inequities that Early Childhood Professionals face when compared to educators in the public school system and in higher education. Certainly many speak of the value and importance of high quality early care and the need for training, in fact many centers now require at least a Bachelors for teachers, however, the salary that one can expect after all that hard work and money (or loans) invested is barely half what a public school teacher would make and in some cases even less. In addition, many times in smaller centers health insurance and other benefits are not offered. This means that for the same
investment these dedicated individuals receive less than half the return. To further the hardship, if one has a family to support, as I do, then they have even less money available to work with. No one wants to avoid taking responsibility for paying back loans but when faced with making choices between paying for your own child's care, transportation, food, etc. vs. higher education courses or a student loan a difficult decision must be made. I love my job, but I have many times been forced to consider leaving the field for a higher paying position outside my area of expertise and certainly away from a career that I feel I have worked hard to build. I know of many high quality teachers and supervisors in this field that have unfortunately had to take that step.

I truly believe that loan forgiveness is a step in the right direction for the field of Early Childhood Education. Again, not as a free pass or a hand out but in conjunction with realistic requirements that would encourage a stong commitment to the field. Loan forgiveness would be a measurable method of honoring the dedication and hard work of the many who are barely treading water in order to keep up with the increasing education and special knowledge requirements that this field has gained in recent years. It will also serve as a commitment to retaining high quality staff in critical positions of importance, not only to the families who have their children in early care settings but to the educators who will see these children throughout the
remainder of their school career and to our society who is constantly looking for ways to support our children in becoming responsible, productive members of society!

Heather M., Head Start site manager, Ithaca, NY

I am the Director of a Child Care Center and one of my duties in this position is hiring qualified teachers to work with the children in our program. I have teachers working in our program who have a Masters Degree in Early Childhood Education. I often hear these teachers talking about trying to find a way to be able to pay their bills which include student loans and still be
able to continue to work at the center. I have one teacher who is looking into getting her loan payment deferred so that she can continue to make her rent payment. I feel that in order for our child care centers to be able to hire educated teachers to provide quality care for children a loan forgivness program is the only option we have!

Pam P., child care center director, Syracuse, NY

I'm probably not the average person who you may think of helping through a loan forgiveness program. At least not at this point in my career. I just turned 50 years old and I have been in this field all of my working years. I now hold a MS Ed in Early childhood education and work at training and education for other professionals in the field. Early in my education I was able to take advantage of a federal loan forgiveness program that reduces my educational dept in exchange for working with the Head Start program.

I want to explain the value of loan forgiveness from the perspective of staff retention - a critical need in this field. My national loan forgiveness program reduced a portion of my debt for each year of service to Head Start. It was small amount really but it did provide some incentive to stay at my low
paying job. It also touched the compassionate side of me to know that I was working in a government supported anti poverty program - part of a national stratgey to help poor families. And that my gevernment was investing in this program and in me as staff.

The field of early care and education works in partnership with families to help give the nation's children a good start in life. This foundation - strong or weak - stays with children for a life time. Early investments in high quality services during the first five years of life have been proven to reap large cost
benefits. The people who do this work are critical to the quality of these early experiences. New York would be wise to invest in the training and education of this workforce and a loan forgiveness strategy helps retain educated teachers in the field rather than losing them to higher paying jobs in the public schools.

On a closing note, I think it is disgraceful that our government has loan forgiveness programs for doctors and lawyers and won't provide the same benefit for those who work with our most vulnerable citizens. This is important work - much more valuable than careers in business, sports, finance etc and yet these teachers, mostly women work for low wages in a child care industry that is under resourced. Its time for government to add
their share to the fees that working families pay.

Evelyn E., early childhood educator, Hammondsport, NY

I have an education degree and would love to stay in early childhood. It is hard to pay off my loan and remain in early childhood considering the pay. If my loan was forgiven it would give me a better chance of staying in this field which I love and consider the most important job in the world.

Suzanne N., child care director, Rye Brook, NY

As a single parent working full time I rely heavily on early childhood
professionals to care for my son during the day. I have seen a number of very skilled, very caring teachers struggle with committment to their work versus being able to pay their bills on their meager wages. Unfortunately many of the best and most skilled are lost to more lucrative fields out of necessity. Offering loan forgiveness could help reduce the turn over in these positions, and acknowledge the work that early childhood professionals are doing. Many public school teachers are eligible for loan forgiveness, and other incentives, as well as earning substantially more than early childhood educators earn. Given that most Kindergarten teachers encourage parents to enroll their children in preschool to "ready" them for public school,
shouldn't we as a society be recognising those who do the work to build a foundation for our children to succeed in public schools?

Jackie S., parent, Owego, NY

Loan forgiveness can start to ameliorate the position of early childhood teachers who work in the preschool sector who frequently work for unacceptably low salaries.

Their position is most unjust and inequitable because teachers with identical certification who work in the public school sector are paid much higher salaries.

This discrepancy is most unfortunate because child development between the ages of 0-5 is a critical period in its own right when children need the highest quality levels of education and care delivered by the highest quality teachers.

The Loan Forgiveness Program is a start in recognizing early childhood teachers financial plight but it is not the whole answer. They must be paid at the same rate as teachers in the public school sector. This at present cannot happen because just pay rates cannot be funded by unsubsidized preschool fees, especially when fees are paid by families who may be earning low wages themselves.

What really is needed is a campaign for adequate federal/state investment in preschool education that will enable fair and just wages for preschool teachers. Certified Early Childhood teachers will then be attracted to work in both preschool and public school sectors.

The current high attrition rate among preschool teachers will fall. Continuity amongst teachers will be secured so that young children and their families will receive high quality teaching and at last Early Childhood teachers who work in the preschool sector will be rewarded and recognized for the important work they do.

In order to have well trained and qualified individuals to teach our children a formal education is essential. I currently hold a Master's Degree in Infant Toddler Theraputic Education. I have worked, raised my children and continued my education so I can continue to work with young children. Unfortunately, the cost of education is so great and the compensation for working with young children is so poor that many other potential teachers will not continue this career path simply because they cannot afford to educate themselves and receive wages that will not cover the cost of their education. The prospect of loan forgiveness will encourage more well suited teachers, who lack a formal education, to improve their skills to become the most effective and knowledgable teacher for young children. In today's society the need for special education teachers has significantly increased. Please help to support this need by granting loan forgiveness to special education teachers who specialize in early education. Remember, ever dollar spent now is worth four times as much throughout the lifetime of a child with special needs.

Linda R.-B. special education teacher, Islip, NY

For myself as a director of a NYS Child Care Center I have a difficult time paying off my loans from when I went to school. Both of my loans are on differment because I simply do not have the income to repay them. My student loans amount to under $10,000. I am a single mom raising two teenagers on my salary, without child support.

I love what I do and have been working in the early childhood field for over 20 years. I have taught for the Head Start program, I have operated a family day care, I have been a room teacher in child care facilities, and I am now a
center director.

Those of us that are dedicated to caring for our young/small children would greatly benefit from a loan forgiveness program. Child Care is traditionally not a field that pays well. Public School teachers have the same degrees as I do and they make two to three times more than myself. They have the
availablility to have part or all of their loans forgiven. I have earned three degrees, in Early Childhood Education and Elementary Education and would benefit from having all or some of my college loans forgiven.

I love what I do, I always have and always will enjoy taking care of, teaching, and educating the youngest people of our nation. Please vote for a loan forgiveness program that would benefit those of us that take care of our little ones who are our youngest learners and future leaders.

Please remember: Anyone can change a diaper, those of us that are
dedicated to the early childhood field teach the young learners as well, which benefits them when they reach the public school system and beyond. We lay the foundation for their education, show us that what we do matters

Denise L., child care center director, Grand Island, NY