Recently I read an article about the Teacher Loan Forgiveness program and it gave me an idea of something we should change in higher education. But first let me briefly tell you what  Teacher Loan Forgiveness program is. Earlier this year the Federal government initiated a loan forgiveness program  to encourage people to enter and continue is the teaching professions. Of course there are many stipulations they have to meet such as be a full time teacher for five complete/consecutive years at educational agencies, certain elementary and secondary schools and those who will serve low-come families. Another caveat is that the loans have to be PLUS loans (federal loans) (more information can be found at http://www.tgslc.org/borrowers/teachers/faq.cfm ). Upon meeting these requirements, their loans for up to $17,000 will be forgiven.

I believe that this is a good initiative and will benefit some teachers but not all teachers. I really believe that there are many others who would benefit from similar loan forgiveness programs who are not in the teaching profession. For example students who are going into caregiving fields where they know that if they take out loans for their education, they will not make enough money upon graduation because of the nature of their work (and it is not about the money for some but the ability to be in positions that will help others such as social work).  These individuals, similar to teachers who can benefit from the loan forgiveness program, can invest more into their passions for what they do as opposed to worrying about making ends meet and paying back their loans when their starting salary in meager as is.